China | Rains and floods in the south, heatwave in the north

(Beijing) Nearly twenty people were missing on Tuesday in China where extreme weather conditions are causing heavy rains and flooding in the south and scorching temperatures in the north.

According to the official Xinhua news agency, four people have disappeared after a flash flood in Changji, in the Xinjiang region, where torrential rains caused landslides and cut roads.

At the other end of the country, in Guangdong province, 15 people were missing in Meizhou after landslides the day before which left five dead, according to state television CCTV.

The channel’s footage showed overturned cars and damaged buildings near Meizhou, where residents in rubber boots tried to retrieve their belongings from muddy water filled with debris.

Other images showed sections of highway washed away by landslides, while rescuers wearing orange vests sailed in rubber boats to reach trapped villagers.

President Xi Jinping called on rescue workers to “do their utmost to respond to emergency situations and do a good job in flood and drought relief and rescue,” Xinhua reported Tuesday.

In the neighboring province of Fujian, opposite Taiwan, more than 500,000 residents have been affected by “continuous rains and flooding,” according to state media. Floods also affected the provinces of Guangxi and Hunan.

The north of the country suffered from some of the highest temperatures since the start of the year.

In the capital Beijing and neighboring areas of Tianjin and Hebei, the temperature is expected to reach 39 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, according to weather services.

Authorities have launched prevention measures against drought and the risk of natural disasters in seven provinces in northern, eastern and central China.

China is locally suffering from extreme weather this year, a phenomenon increasingly common with climate change, scientists say. Greenhouse gas emissions are one of the main drivers of climate change, and China is the largest emitter.