2nd LD-Writethru-China Focus: China renews orange alert for rainstorms following casualties

Meteorological authority on Saturday evening renewed its orange alert for heavy rain in the south and southwest of China in the coming three days as incessant downpour caused more havoc.

Storms will hit the provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu, Hubei, Jiangxi, Hunan, Guizhou and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region from Saturday evening to Sunday evening, with precipitation reaching 280 millimeters in some areas, the National Meteorological Center said on its website.

The center advised people living in the affected areas to take precautions against possible floods, landslides and mud and rock flows, and those living in mountainous areas should move to safe places ahead of time.

China has a four-tier color-coded system for severe weather, with red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.

Hubei has been battered by its fourth round of rainfall since entering flood season on June 18. It is estimated to be one of the heaviest rainstorms the province has ever experienced.

As of Saturday noon, the downpour that started Thursday has left 16 people dead and six missing, destroying or damaging more than 15,800 housing units and inflicting direct economic losses worth 3.96 billion yuan (595 million U.S. dollars), according to figures from the provincial civil affairs department.

Some counties saw record-breaking daily rainfall during the past two days, according to local weather authorities.

The rainstorm resulted in floods, mudslides and urban waterlogging and brought gales and hailstorms.

The four rounds of rainstorms have wreaked havoc across most of Hubei, killing 35 people and leaving 16 missing. More than 480,000 people have been displaced or are in need of aid.

Over 4,400 tents, 3,500 beds, along with clothes and quilts, have been sent to rain-affected regions by provincial authorities.

Besides, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the National Commission for Disaster Relief started a level-IV emergency response on Saturday afternoon, sending a work team and 3,000 tents to help Hubei's relief work.

This is the second national emergency response issued for the province in 12 days.

Monitoring from the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters showed that a quarter of Hubei's 6,300 reservoirs have seen their water levels exceed alarm levels set in the flood season.

Local water authorities have ordered enhanced supervision over reservoirs and the safe discharge of water.

Affected by super El Nino, China is expected to face very complicated weather conditions, and there is a relatively high possibility of basin-wide floods this year, Vice Premier Wang Yang warned in mid-June.

Heavy rain caused a landslide in a village in southwest China's Guizhou Province on Friday morning, killing 11, while 12 remain missing, local officials said.

Heavy rain across the south resulted in heavy casualties in June, while a powerful tornado and hailstorm in Yancheng City in China's Jiangsu Province on June 23 left around 100 dead. Endi