Typhoon Maysak kills two, prompts mass evacuations in southern China

Typhoon Maysak has killed two people in Nanning, the capital of Guangxi province, and forced roughly 48,000 residents to leave their homes as floodwaters breached dams and reservoirs. Deputy mayor Wei Jiang said about 55,000 people were affected by the flooding, with three reservoirs overtopping their barriers.

The provincial government elevated the flood-control emergency to its highest tier, warning that continued heavy rain could worsen conditions and hinder rescue operations. In Guigang, a city 170 miles away, floodwaters turned a major road into a lake, submerging vehicles and sweeping debris into a construction site. The Guigang hydrological station recorded a water level of 42 metres by early afternoon, according to the Ministry of Water Resources.

Further south in Fangchenggang, video footage showed a car being carried away by rising water, while a man struggled to keep his electric scooter from being swept downstream. Separate heavy-rain events in northern China have claimed five lives, including two in Inner Mongolia and three in Liaoning province.

China is also monitoring Super Typhoon Bavi, which is moving toward Taiwan and is expected to bring strong winds and heavy rain to eastern China later this week, Xinhua reported. Analysts note that weather-related risks can cost tens of billions of dollars annually as floods disrupt cities, industry and agriculture.

Maysak made its first landfall on Hainan island on Friday, marking the first tropical cyclone to reach mainland China this year, before striking Vietnam on Sunday. Vietnamese media reported extensive damage in the border city of Mong Cai, with trees toppled and metal roofs torn from buildings as the storm entered China.

Meteorologists forecast additional heavy rainfall across Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan and other provinces in the coming days, affecting a combined population of more than 150 million people.