CHENGDU, Aug. 12 (Xinhua) -- Heavy rain is continuing to wreak havoc in southwest China's Sichuan Province, with tens of thousands of residents evacuated, houses damaged and roads blocked.
Torrential rain starting from Monday evening in the province has left six people dead and five others missing, and has forced more than 40,000 residents to evacuate as of Wednesday noon, according to the province's flood control and drought relief headquarters.
Around 107,000 people had been affected by the rain across the province, with 14 rivers swollen by floodwater, it said.
The downpours triggered mudslides in some areas of Sichuan, damaging houses and roads. Traffic was interrupted on a national highway due to landslides in Shimian County, Ya'an City.
Local authorities advised tourist sites and rural family inns to suspend operations in five major cities and prefectures of Sichuan.
This spell of downpours has been the heaviest rain since the beginning of this year's flood season in Sichuan. The province has coordinated 49 emergency relief teams to aid in local disaster relief work.
Sichuan issued a top-level red alert for flash floods on Tuesday evening as downpours continued to lash the province. Enditem
