2,600 evacuated as rainstorms hit Southwest China's Chongqing

CHONGQING -- More than 2,600 residents were evacuated early Friday morning after intense rain inundated streets and houses in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality.

Rainstorms have battered 28 districts and counties of Chongqing since Thursday, with a record-breaking maximum daily rainfall of 227 mm recorded in the Wanzhou district, according to the local meteorological service.

The heavy rain has swollen 44 rivers in Wanzhou by 1-4 meters, said the district's emergency management bureau. Reporters at the site said many low-lying streets have been submerged in flood water as deep as 1.5 meters.

The evacuation in Wanzhou happened in the early hours of Friday, said the district's headquarters on flood control and drought relief, adding that no casualties have been reported so far.

The district has upgraded the emergency response for floods from Class III to Class II.

Chongqing's meteorological department has warned of secondary disasters, such as landslides and floods in small and medium-sized rivers amid the current rainstorms.