Severe flooding triggered by Tropical Storm Maysak has killed 39 people in southern China's Guangxi region, authorities reported on Thursday.
The national meteorological center said torrential rains dumped 10 to 40 centimeters of water across southern Guangxi, with some areas receiving over 90 centimeters.
The deluge caused multiple reservoir breaches, sending massive torrents into local towns and cities.
Nanning Vice Mayor Ding Wei stated at a news briefing that a dam breach east of the city in Hengzhou caused 26 of the fatalities.
Authorities said nine individuals remain missing across the broader Guangxi region, while emergency crews have evacuated approximately 130,000 residents using drones and 5,700 rescue boats.
In Guigang, northeast of Hengzhou, rescue teams worked to extract over 10,000 trapped students and teachers from a cluster of local schools.
A local zoo in Guigang reported more than 100 animals missing, including zebras, porcupines, and tropical birds.
An animal shelter operator in Binyang rescued dozens of stranded pets from rising waters.
In Hengzhou, escaping snakes from a local farm prompted authorities to distribute antivenom and issue safety advisories to residents.
Vice Mayor Ding Wei noted that floodwaters are currently receding and electricity has been restored to over 60,000 homes, though additional rainfall is expected over the next two days.
Meanwhile, regional weather forecasts show Typhoon Bavi passing just north of Taiwan before making landfall in China's Zhejiang or Fujian province on Saturday.
Government officials in Taiwan have urged the island's 23 million residents to stock up on emergency supplies for what could be the most powerful typhoon to hit the area in years.
Separately, state media reported that severe thunderstorms and rare tornadoes killed at least 11 people, injured over 300, and damaged thousands of buildings in central China's Hubei province earlier this week.
A student in Huanggang city described the initial moments to the BBC as "just an ordinary thunderstorm."
The severe weather caused widespread panic as debris began impacting local infrastructure.
"A lot of students were cut by flying glass," the student told the BBC.
Local authorities in Hubei have launched independent rescue and relief operations to assist affected residents, marking the region's first major tornado event since 2021.
