Victims of China floods race to salvage property

Massive downpours have struck Guangdong province in recent days, triggering deluges that have claimed the lives of four people and forced the evacuation of more than 100,000.

The severe floods are virtually unheard of so early in the year even in lush, subtropical Guangdong, with one senior official linking them to worsening .

AFP reporters in Shatang village on Wednesday saw staff and officials at a tourist resort taking advantage of a break in the rain to clear mud from the streets.

"The water has really risen over the last few days," said Liu Yongqi, 25, a general manager of a local homestay.

"The road was flooded and for five days we could only get to the rest of the village by small motorboat," she told AFP.

"Luckily we had enough supplies here anyway," she said, adding that the cleanup operation would take "another two or three days".

Chairs, toilet bowls and pieces of sheet metal lay strewn across a meadow nearby.

Some employees worked to fix a wooden yurt used for group meals, while others armed with brooms and wearing waterproof boots moved between holiday bungalows to clean up the mess.

Workers cleared debris from a flooded areas.

Map of southern China's Guangdong province, locating the areas most affected by heavy rainfall in recent days.

Authorities have warned of more downpours across Guangdong.

Guangdong is China's manufacturing heartland, home to around 127 million people.