‘Red alert’ in 5 Chinese cities as torrential rains kill 21

Rescue crews have been dispatched to the worst affected areas, including the cities of Suizhou, Xiangyang and Xiaogan, China's Ministry of Emergency Management said. More than 2,700 houses and shops suffered flood damage and power, transportation and communications were also disrupted.

Shanghai: Five cities in the central Chinese province of Hubei have declared "red alerts" after torrential rain left 21 people dead and forced the evacuation of nearly 6,000 people, state media reported. The deaths were recorded in the township of Liulin, part of the city of Suizhou in the north of the province. More than 2,700 houses and shops suffered flood damage and power, transportation and communications were also disrupted, the official Xinhua news agency reported. Rescue crews have been dispatched to the worst affected areas, including the cities of Suizhou, Xiangyang and Xiaogan, China's Ministry of Emergency Management said. The city of Yicheng also saw a record 400 millimetres of rain on Thursday.