Chongqing: Floods in China kill at least 15 people as tens of thousands evacuated

Floods in China caused by seasonal torrents in mountain areas have killed at least 15 people.

The flooding hit Chongqing on Tuesday, with thousands in the southwestern mountainous region displaced and another four people reported missing on Wednesday.

Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated, with more than 85,000 moved out of the province of Sichuan, the official Chinese Xinhua News Agency reported.

In Chongqing, almost all of which now is designated a flood risk, the flooding appears to be at its deadliest.

Rescue teams in inflatable boats were ferrying villagers to safety and workers were clearing roads blocked by landslides, according to photos posted on the government's website.

In 2021, more than 300 people died in the central province of Henan as record rainfall turned streets into rushing rivers.

China’s most deadly floods in recent history were in 1998, when 4,150 people died, mostly along the Yangtze River.

Seasonal flooding hits large parts of China every year, particularly in the semi-tropical south.

However, some northern regions this year have reported the worst floods in 50 years.

Much of China, including Beijing, is sweltering under heatwaves that have arrived earlier and lasted for more days in a row than in decades gone by.

Temperatures in the capital were forecast to hit 40C (104F) on Thursday.

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