At least 24 people have died after a section of a road collapsed in southern China, according to officials.

Rescuers are at the scene in Guangdong province after a 60-ft stretch of the road in the city of Meizhou disappeared into a hole.

Officials have not confirmed the cause of the collapse, but the mountainous area has experienced heavy rain and storms in recent days.

The authorities said 20 cars had fallen into a large opening in the road at about 2am on Wednesday, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

State broadcaster CCTV reported 30 people had been taken to hospital.

Aerial pictures show how one side of the road has caved in and drifted down an adjacent slope.

Witnesses told local media they heard a loud noise and saw a hole open up several metres wide behind them after driving along the section of the road just before it collapsed.

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It comes after relentless rains, hail and winds of near hurricane intensity battered southern China last week.

The conditions forced the evacuation of an entire town of more than 1,700 people in Guangdong.

Power lines were brought down and mobile telephone networks were disrupted across the region, as the rains set off dangerous mudslides, overwhelmed homes and destroyed bridges.

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