China is to hold a national day of mourning on Sunday for those who have died in mudslides in the northwest, as the death toll rose to 1,239 people.

Chinese flags across the country and embassies worldwide will be lowered to half-mast and public entertainment suspended, state media reported.

Teams are continuing to recover bodies in Gansu province in the wake of Saturday's landslides in Zhouqu county.

Another 505 people remain missing and thousands are in temporary shelters.

Chinese health authorities say that hygiene and safety for those left homeless is a priority, as concerns mount over a lack of clean drinking water.

Following a decision by China's cabinet to declare a day of mourning, the Ministry of Culture issued a circular ruling that films, karaoke and online entertainment be suspended on Sunday, according to Xinhua news agency.

River fears

In Zhouqu, soldiers are trying to remove debris from the Bailing River amid fears that more rain could cause it to overflow, causing more chaos for a town that is already one third underwater.

Heavy rain has been sweeping across central and western China for most of the week, with more rain forecast for Zhouqu county in the next few days.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs says at least 45,000 people have evacuated their homes.

Survivors are now living in tents, which are drenched through, pitched on unstable slopes.

Some cases of dysentary were reported by state media.

The government has brought in mobile water purification units, able to provide clean water for 30,000 people, according to China News Service.

Sichuan province to the south has also been affected, with 38 people still missing, after rains spread, triggering landslides.

According to Xinhua, the heavy rains have affected more than 305 million people across the country and cost $1.7bn (£1.1bn).

Source: bbc.co.uk

Twitter