China renews blue alert for rainstorms

BEIJING -- China's national observatory on Thursday renewed a blue alert for rainstorms across vast stretches of the country for the next 24 hours.

From Thursday afternoon to Friday afternoon, heavy rain and rainstorms are expected in the provinces of Zhejiang, Yunnan, Hunan, Hubei, Anhui, Guizhou and Jiangxi, as well as the Tibet autonomous region, the National Meteorological Center said.

Some of these regions will see up to 60 mm of hourly precipitation, the center said.

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

Local governments should remain alert for possible flooding, landslides and mudslides caused by heavy rain, and outdoor operations should be halted in hazardous areas, the center said.