HONG KONG — Heavy rain battered the Chinese capital over the weekend, forcing the closure of more than 180 tourist attractions and the cancellation of roughly 500 flights.

An orange weather alert – the second-highest in the country’s four-tier system – remained in place on Sunday (Aug 13) as a storm that set in on Friday night continued to lash the city.

The Beijing Morning Post reported that by Sunday morning enough water to fill more than 4,000 Olympic-size swimming pools had been added to the capital’s reservoirs.

Mr Zhao Wei, the city’s chief forecaster, said the wild weather was the result of a “vortex” moving towards eastern Mongolia.

Hail was reported in Haidian, Tongzhou and Daxing districts and more than a dozen roads in the capital were flooded. The authorities also issued warnings for flash floods in mountainous areas.

Chaoyang district recorded the most rainfall from the storm, with 160.88mm falling on Saturday.

Among the tourist attractions forced to close their doors were Black Dragon Pool, Taoyuan Fairy Valley Scenic Area and Jietai Temple, Beijing Daily reported.

More rain was forecast for the capital for Sunday night but conditions were expected to ease during the week.

The China Meteorological Administration said the heavy rain would persist in the country’s north and northeast, and eastern Inner Mongolia, until Monday.

Thunderstorms and hail were also forecast for Guizhou, Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei and Jiangxi provinces. SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST