Heavy rain disrupts rail traffic in Southwest China

GUIYANG - Continuous heavy rain has disrupted rail traffic in Southwest China, with six high-speed trains being halted Thursday.

Railway authorities are checking a section of the high-speed rail line between Kunming and Shanghai in Guizhou province to ensure transport safety, the China Railway Chengdu Group said.

The authorities closed the section between Guiding and Kaili following the torrential rains.

As a result, two trains running between Guiyang and Hangzhou, two between Guiyang and Ningbo and two between Guiyang and Tongren were suspended Thursday.

Heavy rain has been battering most of Guizhou since Tuesday and the provincial weather service has issued an orange alert, the second-highest, against potential disasters.

In the 24 hours to 8 am Thursday, a town in the Qiandongnan Miao and Dong autonomous prefecture received the largest precipitation of 143.1 mm.

The rain is forecast to last until Sunday and the largest accumulated precipitation is expected to exceed 200 mm.

The provincial weather service has asked the public to guard against potential flash floods, landslides and water logging in urban areas.