The National Meteorological Center(NMC) on Saturday kept its rainstorm alert at "orange," the second-highest level, due to the persistent downpour that has caused floods and several deaths in the country's southern and eastern provinces.

The observatory said heavy rainstorm will hit provinces alongside the Yangtze River in the next 24 hours, with downpours in parts of Hubei, Jiangxi, Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.

China has a four-color rainstorm warning system, with red being the most serious and followed by orange, yellow and blue.

The NMC urged local authorities to take emergency measures against rainstorms, including suspending outdoor operations and cutting outdoor power supplies in potentially dangerous areas. It has also called for prevention of possible torrential flooding and mudslides.

Rains and flooding in south China, which have been continuing since Monday, have left 25 people dead, 25 missing, and forced about 671,200 to evacuate, the Ministry of Civil Affairs said on Friday.