Severe weather blamed for at least one death in Hangzhou

Heavy rain that has affected the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River since Monday is expected to last for about a week.

The National Meteorological Center warned on Tuesday that severe rain will affect 12 regions, including the south of Anhui province, the southeast of Jiangsu province and other areas bordering the Yangtze, with rainfall of 100 to 150 millimeters expected on Tuesday and Wednesday.

More regions will be affected later in the week.

From late afternoon on Monday, the rain had caused damage in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, especially affecting residents in the north of the city, where many streets were flooded.

A 63-year-old woman was drowned in the city's Yuhang district on Monday as she rode a tricycle in deep water under a bridge. Her body was found after a 20-minute search.

Yu Chao, spokesman for the Hangzhou flood prevention and drought relief headquarters, said it was the most severe rainfall Hangzhou had seen in recent years.

"The average water level dropped 10 centimeters before the rainfall. We started to drain water from rivers in the city at noon on Monday. However, the amount of rain exceeded our expectations," Yu said on Tuesday.

Yu added that workers would check the drainage system again and continue to pump water from rivers.

On Tuesday morning, the rain moved from Zhejiang province to Jiangsu, affecting the cities of Nanjing, Yangzhou, Zhenjiang and Nantong.

By noon, 50 to 100 millimeters of rain had fallen in some parts of Jiangsu. A red alert - the highest for heavy rain - was issued in Nanjing and Yangzhou.

On Monday, the Jiangsu Meteorological Bureau warned residents to expect continuous rainfall in the coming week.

The latest information on conditions throughout the province will be reported to related departments every three hours, with alerts for residents being sent via texts, online platforms and other methods.

More than 50 cities and regions in Anhui province were also hit by heavy rainfall, with Taihu and Tongcheng issuing red alerts. Rainfall exceeded 50 millimeters in more than 200 villages.

Heavy rain and lightning were also reported in some areas of Shanghai.

"Heavy rainfall is expected to affect certain places in Shanghai in the evening," said Fu Yi, a chief service officer with Shanghai Meteorological Bureau.

Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, saw heavy rainfall on Sunday and is preparing for more this week.

In April, the city authorities approved a three-year plan to build drainage facilities in central Wuhan. The city will invest nearly 13 billion yuan ($2.12 billion) on improving the drainage system by 2015.

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Liu Kun in Wuhan contributed to this story.