A man falls down in a flooded street in Wuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on the way of evacuating to safe area today. Floodwater, like waterfalls, rushes into a district of Wuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region today. The water level of the Xijiang River reached 26.50 meters, 9.2 meters abvove the danger level. The unprecedented floods have forced the evacuation of some 100,000 people in the low areas. (China Daily/newsphoto)

Torrential rain and ensuing floods have claimed seven lives with one person still missing in the northern areas of southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local flood-control and drought relief headquarters said yesterday.
Three people were killed on Sunday by downpour-triggered floods in Hechi City and four more were killed in Liuzhou City. One person has been missing after a ferry boat capsized in surging floods in Hezhou City.
Torrential rain and floods have been sweeping the northern parts of Guangxi since late last week. About 1.52 million people were affected and direct economic losses were estimated at about 369 million yuan (US$44.5 million), officials said.
According to local hydrological stations, heavy rain will continue in the next three to five days, mainly concentrating on areas around Liuzhou, Guigang, Guilin and Wuzhou.
Torrential rain since last Saturday has also wreaked havoc in central and southern parts of eastern Zhejiang Province, affecting 200,000 people and incurring direct economic losses of more than 100 million yuan, according to the provincial flood and drought control authority.
No casualties have been reported so far.
A total of 73 townships in central and southern Zhejiang were ravaged by the downpour. Consequently, more than 600 houses have collapsed, 7,333 hectares of farmland affected, 72 industrial enterprises closed down, and 16 hydropower stations devastated.
In northeastern China's Heilongjiang Province, the devastating flood at a school has claimed the lives of 117 people, including 105 school children, local officials said yesterday.
The disaster occurred on June 10 when a flash flood, triggered by heavy rain, struck Shalan Town in Ning'an City, submerging its low-lying primary school.