Typhoon Maysak, the first to make landfall in China this season, has battered the southern province of Guangxi over the weekend, triggering flash floods that burst dam walls, swamped the city of Nanning and displaced tens of thousands of people. At least four people have died in Guangxi, while the same weather system spawned rare tornadoes hundreds of kilometres away in central Hubei province, killing a further 11. The scale of the devastation has prompted President Xi Jinping to order "all out" rescue and relief efforts, even as a second storm, Super Typhoon Bavi, is forecast to hit China's eastern coast later this week.

Residents described floodwaters rising within minutes, leaving thousands stranded on rooftops with dwindling food, no electricity and little communication; official figures put 60,000 people evacuated and at least 90,000 affected. Snakes, including some escaped from farms, have been reported in the waters. In Hubei, at least two tornadoes — caused by cold northern air colliding with warm air from the typhoon — tore through the cities of Ezhou and Huanggang, shattering windows and injuring students with flying glass; one man was reportedly blown from his 12th-floor flat. Northern China has also seen deadly flash floods and record rainfall in recent days.