By Agencies

Share Link:

The heaviest rain to hit Beijing in six decades has killed at least 10 people and left cars and buses submerged, while 10 other storm deaths were reported elsewhere in the country.

The deluge struck on Saturday afternoon and continued into the night, flooding major roads. State media said more rain was expected on Sunday.

More than 500 flights were cancelled at the main airport, the Beijing News reported.

The rain on Saturday night knocked down trees in Beijing and trapped cars and buses in waist-deep water in some areas.

In Tongzhou district on the capital's eastern outskirts, two people were killed by collapsed roofs, while one person was fatally struck by lightning and a fourth electrocuted by a fallen power line as he helped neighbours escape, the government's Xinhua News Agency said.

Elsewhere, six people were killed by rain-triggered landslides in Sichuan province in the west, Xinhua said, citing disaster officials.

Four people also died in the Shanxi province in the north when their truck was swept away by a rain-swollen river.

Xinhua said 460mm fell in the capital's Fangshan district, with the capital as a whole averaging 170mm.

It said 14,500 people, mostly in outlying districts, had to be evacuated.

The Beijing News said they included 5,200 people who left areas in Fangshan that were vulnerable to landslides.

On Sunday, the government warned of more storms over the following 24 hours for China's northeast, the port city of Tianjin east of Beijing, Inner Mongolia in the north, Sichuan and neighbouring Yunnan province, and Guangdong and Hainan provinces in the southeast.