BEIJING - Rainstorms are expected to continue in south China with the country's meteorological authority on Thursday maintaining a yellow alert for the region.

The National Meteorological Center forecast that downpours are likely to sweep across parts of Guizhou province, Yunnan province, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, and areas south of the Yangtze River.

The center added that thunderstorms, gales, hail and heavy rain will hit parts of Inner Mongolia region, north and northeast China over the next three days.

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