Extreme Weather Forces 240,000 Evacuations in China

Relentless rainstorms have led to the evacuation of nearly a quarter of a million people in eastern China as swelling rivers, including the Yangtze, threaten widespread flooding and havoc in the region. This extreme weather event is yet another blow for China, which has been grappling with severe climatic conditions ranging from torrential rainfall to scorching heat waves over recent months. 

China is known as the world's leading emitter of greenhouse gases - emissions that scientists argue are responsible for driving climate change. The effects of climate change are believed to exacerbate extreme weather events making them more frequent and intense. 

State news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday that these storms had impacted 991,000 residents in Anhui province alone, necessitating an evacuation of 242,000 individuals by Tuesday afternoon. "Rainstorms had wreaked havoc in 36 counties and districts across seven prefecture-level cities within Anhui," it stated citing information from the provincial emergency-management department. 

The report also highlighted concerns about rising water levels along China's longest river - the Yangtze River. In its section running through Anhui province, water levels surpassed warning marks and continued to rise dangerously high due to persistent rains. 

In addition to this imminent threat posed by Yangtze River's swollen banks; heavy rainfall has also pushed waters above their alert levels in another twenty rivers and six lakes within Anhui province.  

Footage aired on state broadcaster CCTV showed alarming images where parts of the city were inundated with flood water so high it almost covered a sculpture typically standing about twelve meters above normal water line level at Wuhu city near Yangtze River. Images presented volunteers clad in red jackets carrying umbrellas patrolling near overflowing riverbanks while stockpiling bright red lifejackets and lifebuoys on shorelines anticipating possible rescue operations 

According to Xinhua reports more than one hundred millimetres' worth of rainfall was recorded at hundreds of weather stations across Anhui province within a 24-hour period from Monday to Tuesday. In Hexi county, near the provincial capital Hefei, an astonishing 266 millimetres was recorded. 

In response to this escalating crisis tens of thousands of officials have been deployed to monitor dams and dykes along the Yangtze in Anhui. Furthermore, the provincial weather office has forecast more rainfalls over large parts of Anhui until Friday while issuing warnings for potential "geological disasters" in southern regions. 

These intense rainfalls are not isolated incidents - they follow a series of deadly disasters triggered by extreme weather conditions in southern China recently. Last month mountain floods caused five fatalities in central Hunan as per state media reports; while another landslide incident claimed eight lives. Earlier in June heavy rains and subsequent flooding resulted in 38 deaths reported from Guangdong province located towards the south. 

This situation underscores growing concerns about human-induced climate change's role amplifying such devastating natural disasters worldwide with scientists cautioning that unless significant steps are taken these events could become increasingly common occurrences threatening countless lives and livelihoods globally.