700 villagers evacuated due to dam breach in central China

CHANGSHA - More than 700 residents in a central China village were evacuated Saturday as a dam above it was breached during heavy rain and landslides.

Heavy rain has pounded parts of Hunan Province since Friday. At a village in Yueyang County, rain-triggered landslides clogged the floodway of a dam, causing a surge of water in the dam and collapsing the dam wall, the local government reported.

Dozens of houses were flooded, but there were no casualties as all villagers were evacuated in time, it said.

Across the province, floods trapped hundreds in the county of Pingjiang and the city of Jishou. Landslides occurred in Luxi county.

Water at a section of the Yuanjiang River has surged nearly seven meters in the past 24 hours.

The Hunan provincial weather forecast bureau said heavy rain will continue on Sunday.