Heavy rain to continue in Henan, Hebei

Through Friday, heavy rain is forecast to continue in most parts of Henan and Hebei provinces, which have been hit hard this week, the National Meteorological Center said.

A rainstorm battered central and northern parts of Henan on Wednesday with strong winds and 668 millimeters of precipitation after a four-day downpour inundated Zhengzhou, the provincial capital.

Meanwhile, a tornado hit Baoding, Hebei, at around 5 pm on Wednesday, the center said.

Elsewhere, Guangdong and Hainan provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region also experienced rainstorms as a result of Typhoon Cempaka, which landed in Guangdong on Tuesday. The rainfall in those areas was lighter than in Henan and Hebei, according to the center.

From Thursday to Friday, moderate and heavy rain is forecast to hit North China, the Yellow River and Huaihe River regions, southwestern and South China and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region's Tianshan area.

Over the weekend, the rain will focus on Shanghai and southeastern provinces including Zhejiang and Fujian as Typhoon In-Fa approaches, the center said.