Residents evacuated as heavy rainfall floods southern Chinese cities

A persistent downpour which started on Friday 19 April has flooded various cities in southern China.

In Shaoguan City, Guangdong province in southern China, heavy rainfall over the weekend has left urban and rural areas under water, blocking highways and disrupting traffic.

Rescuers were deployed to evacuate residents with boats, footage from Chinese state media CCTV showed.

Low-lying areas of Qingyuan and Zhaoqing, also in the Guangdong province, were deluged with rain.

No casualties have been reported yet.

The rainfall is expected to persist until Monday in some areas.