Historic Flooding Devastates Guangdong, Takes Nine Lives and Causes Major Damage

Yikes, man. It's been raining buckets in rural parts of Guangdong province in southern China for days now, and things have gotten really, really bad. Like, historic flood levels kind of bad. Nine people have lost their lives, and six more are still missing. The flooding has been described as some of the worst in recent memory, and it's left a trail of destruction across several districts.

According to local news, the worst hit areas are Meixian district of Meizhou city and Jiaoling county. In Meixian, four people died and four others are missing. In Jiaoling, five people didn't make it. The heavy rains triggered landslides, toppled homes, and flooded huge chunks of the area. In Meixian district, an important road was even washed away during the deluge.

READ MORE Trending latest news HERE

The Songyuan river, which flows through Meizhou, hit its highest flood level ever recorded, making things even worse. The economic damage is staggering too, with direct losses estimated at 1.06 billion yuan ($146 million) in Meixian district and a whopping 3.65 billion yuan ($502 million) in Jiaoling county.

And it doesn't look like it's going to let up anytime soon. The National Meteorological Center has issued new warnings for more heavy rain and extreme weather in several provinces over the next 24 hours. Provinces like Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu, and even Guizhou in the south are bracing for another round of it, with rainfall totals expected to reach 5-8 centimeters in a single day.

This all comes on the heels of other severe weather incidents in the region, including landslides and flooding in Fujian and Guangxi provinces. In Guangxi, a student even drowned after falling into a swollen river during the heavy rain.

Emergency crews are working around the clock to rescue anyone still trapped and help communities recover from the devastation. It's a tough time for everyone involved, and our thoughts are with the families of those who lost loved ones. Let's hope the weather starts to clear up soon and these poor folks can start rebuilding their lives.