At least four people have died and 17 are missing after heavy rain triggered landslides in China's southwestern Guizhou province on Sunday, with the military deployed to help with rescue efforts, Reuters reported.
Two people died in the city of Changsha and two in the nearby village of Qingyang, where 19 people from eight different households were initially trapped after being hit by a landslide, state broadcaster CCTV reported today.
Authorities have also issued warnings of the risk of geological disasters in nearby areas.
China is facing increasingly hot and prolonged heat waves and more frequent and unpredictable heavy rains as a result of climate change.
The country is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, authorities say, because of its huge population.
Authorities have launched a third emergency response to heavy rain in mountainous Guizhou, as well as in nearby Hunan and Jiangxi provinces. More than 400 emergency personnel, including military officers and firefighters, have been dispatched to help with the rescue mission.
Heavy rains over the past week in southern China's Guangdong province and Guangxi region have killed seven people and left several missing, with authorities warning of heavy rain, mountain floods and geological disasters in the south of the country.
Chinese meteorological data shows that 2024 was the warmest year for the country since comparable records began more than six decades ago.
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