Heavy rains and ensuing floods have battered the basin of the Yangtze River, China's longest river, causing water levels along the river to increase dramatically since the flood season began on June 10.

Water levels at several of the river's observation stations increased by an average of 0.5 meter per day over the past two days, according to the Yangtze River hydrology bureau. These stations include the Cuntan station in the upper reaches of the Yangtze, the Shashi and Wuhan stations in the river's middle reaches and the Datong station in the river's lower reaches.

Water levels have also increased significantly at the Chenglingji and Hukou monitoring stations. The stations are located near Dongting Lake and Boyang Lake, which are partially fed by the Yangtze River.

The National Meteorological Center issued a code orange rainstorm alert on Saturday, the second-highest alert level for rainstorms. The alert said that torrential floods and landslides may occur along the Yangtze River basin, from the southwest Sichuan Basin to east China's Yangtze River Delta.