Flood warning for much of south, central and eastern China

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House crashes into river after heavy flooding in China

Raw video: House collapses into river in Guangxi region of China after heavy flooding in the area.

BEIJING – China has issued a warning for mudslides and flooding across a wide swath of south, central and eastern China, with heavy rain set to strike the area into Thursday.

The National Meteorological Center raised the threat level on Wednesday to yellow, its third highest, with thunderstorms and strong winds also forecast.

The provinces of Guizhou, Hunan, Jiangxi, Fujian, Anhui and Zhejiang and the far southern region of Guangxi that have already suffered flooding in recent days will receive the most rain, the center said.

DEADLY FLOODING IN CHINA FORCES 228,000 INTO SHELTERS; HOUSE SEEN COLLAPSING INTO RIVER

State broadcaster CCTV showed torrents of water flowing through the streets of mountain towns, carrying cars and motorcycles along with them.

An aerial view shows the ancient town of Xiasi during flooding in Kaili city in southwest China's Guizhou province, June 23. (Chinatopix via AP)

Authorities have warned the risk is especially high for children to be carried away by river currents or unable to escape from ponds.

More than 20 people have died and tens of thousands forced to evacuate in summer floods this year.

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency a resident looks out from her flood damaged home in Bifeng Town of Zheng'an County in Zunyi, southwest China's Guizhou Province June 13. (Liu Xu/Xinhua via AP)

Direct losses have already been estimated at more than $500 million, with the crucial tourism industry in the southern Guangxi region particularly hard hit.

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China’s worst flood in recent years was in 1998, when more than 2,000 people died and almost 3 million homes were destroyed.