The Wuhan flood control and drought relief headquarters issued a blue alert for flooding on Wednesday morning, as the water level of the Yangtze River, which runs through Wuhan in Hubei province, continues to rise after recent sustained rainfall.

The water level was measured at the city's Hankou Monitoring Station at 8 am on Tuesday at 24.78 meters, 4.01 meters higher than the same period last year, the office said.

It added that the water level of the main stream of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze had continued to rise because of recent rainfall and increased water volume from upstream.

At seven monitoring stations along the river, the water level rose above the warning level on Monday, most at 2.3 meters to 4.1 meters higher than the same period of last year.

The Changjiang Water Resources Commission launched a level Ⅳ emergency response to get prepared for any flooding and ensure that adequate measures are in place.