China issues alert ahead of rainstorms

BEIJING - Rainstorms are expected to hit China's southern regions late on Sunday, with the country's meteorological authorities issuing a blue alert, the lowest level in the warning system.

The National Meteorological Center said that some parts of Gansu, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, Guizhou, Guangxi, as well as Chongqing municipality will see heavy rain or rainstorms from late Sunday to Tuesday.

As well as rain, strong winds or hail could affect those regions, the center forecast, warning people there to be on high alert.

Meanwhile, the center asked residents and relief teams in the quake-hit Lushan County in Ya'an City of Sichuan Province to watch out for possible geological disasters as moderate rain will hit the area.

Lushan will experience precipitation of 10 to 45 mm on Sunday evening and of 3 to 8 mm on Monday, the center said.

China has a four-color coded warning system, with the red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.