BEIJING, China: Extreme weather is once again testing China's resilience, as intensifying monsoon rains trigger floods across major provinces and cities, prompting red alerts and evacuations.

Central and southern China were on high alert for flash floods on Friday as the annual East Asia monsoon gathered pace. Meteorologists describe the rainfall as extreme and increasingly tied to climate change, disrupting life and industry in the world's second-largest economy.

On Thursday, authorities issued the first red alerts of the year, covering the provinces of Anhui, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Guizhou, and the Guangxi region, according to Xinhua, citing the water resources ministry and the national weather forecaster.

China's rainy season, which began earlier than usual in early June, is typically followed by intense heat that further stresses crops, damages infrastructure, and depletes water reserves. In previous years, the combined impact has caused significant economic losses, particularly in agriculture, a sector worth US$2.8 trillion.

Last July, natural disasters caused more than $10 billion in damage. In 2020, extreme rainfall during one of China's longest rainy seasons pushed losses to nearly three times that amount.

In southern Hunan, heavy rains late last week caused the Lishui River to overflow, marking the most significant floods in the area since 1998. Water levels surged more than two metres above the safety mark, flooding main roads and sweeping debris downstream, according to videos posted on Douyin, China's version of TikTok.

In Chongqing, a hilly city in the southwest, apartment buildings were partially submerged, and cars were washed away as muddy waters rushed through the streets. State media reported that some floodwaters rose near the tops of power lines.

Nearly 300 people were evacuated from towns in a mountainous county within Chongqing, where rainfall reached 304 mm (12 inches) in a single day. At least one river in the area swelled by 19 metres due to runoff from surrounding peaks, CCTV reported.

Local media said the city of Zhaoqing in southern Guangdong experienced record-breaking floodwaters last week, rising over five metres above warning levels, leading to power outages.

As the climate crisis deepens, China faces mounting pressure to upgrade its flood infrastructure, support affected communities, and protect key economic sectors from weather-related shocks.