Northwest China's Gansu upgrades mountain torrent alert to orange

LANZHOU -- Northwest China's Gansu province has upgraded its mountain torrent alert from yellow to orange on Sunday morning, according to the provincial water resources department and meteorological administration.

Intense rainfall were reported in the central and eastern parts of the province on Saturday and Sunday. The provincial meteorological administration forecast that Zhangye, Wuwei and other cities and prefectures in the province will experience heavy rainstorms with precipitation up to 80 mm per hour from 2 pm Sunday to 5 am Monday.

Additionally, thunderstorms, gales or hailstorms are forecast for areas including the southern part of Lanzhou, the provincial capital. From 2 pm Sunday to 11 am Monday, there is a high probability of mountain torrents in cities and prefectures such as Lanzhou, Baiyin, Wuwei, Dingxi and Linxia.

Local authorities are urged to evacuate people from vulnerable spots and take measures to prevent hail damage to greenhouses and cash crops.

China has a four-tier weather warning system, with red representing the most severe warning, followed by orange, yellow and blue.