Rescuers are continuing the search for dozens of people missing after heavy rain caused flash flooding and a bridge collapse in different parts of China, killing at least 25 people.

Flash flooding tore through a village in south-western Sichuan province in the middle of the night on Saturday, and rescuers said 10 people died and they were searching for another 29 who were missing.

Days of heavy rain swelled the river that runs through the village of Xinhua in Hanyuan county.

excavators remove debris from a bridge
Excavators remove debris from a bridge in the aftermath of floods at Xinhua village (Wang Xi/Xinhua/AP)

The water swept away 40 houses on the riverbank, according to local media, while breaking bridges and cutting off roads.

In north-western Shaanxi province, vehicles fell into a rushing river when part of a highway bridge collapsed late on Friday, and state broadcaster CCTV reported at least 15 deaths confirmed by Monday.

A photo released by China’s Xinhua news agency showed a section of the bridge snapped and folded at almost a 90-degree angle into the rushing brown water.

Rescuers said on Saturday that 20 cars and 30 people were missing.

Rescue workers operator heavy diggers
Rescue workers in Xinhua village (Ya’an Integrated Media Centre/Xinhua/AP)

The collapse raised more questions about the safety of China’s road and bridge infrastructure, which has been built rapidly in recent decades. A similar collapse in May in Guangdong province killed 36 people.

Heavy rain and flooding pose a special risk to mountain roads and highway bridges because of erosion, debris flows and landslides.

With climate change, the world is likely to face more extreme weather and climate events such as record heat and rainfall. This year, in just the first five days of May, 70 countries or territories broke heat records.