Scores of people were killed in flooding after a tropical storm caused heavy rainfall across multiple Chinese regions.

Ding Wei, the vice mayor of Nanning city, said at a press briefing on Thursday that “most of the deaths were in Hengzhou, where the partial collapse of a reservoir dam sent torrents of water into the city and claimed lives”.

While many were injured, several others were evacuated.

The development came as Taiwan and China’s east coast prepared for a typhoon expected to make landfall in the coming days.

Footage circulating online showed rescue teams helping trapped students and teachers from a cluster of schools in Guigang city, northeast of Hengzhou.

Amid ongoing efforts to tackle the disasters, at least 900 snakes, including cobras, escaped from breeding farms, forcing authorities to stay on high alert.

Videos of the snakes swimming in the floodwater went viral on social media, with people attempting to wade through thigh-high waters to catch the elusive reptiles as they rapidly escaped.

While teams were deployed to capture the escaped snakes, authorities set up temporary medical clinics to ensure rapid treatment of bite victims.

Guangxi is China’s largest centre for commercial snake farming, with about 30 million reptiles bred for traditional medicine, leather products and meat.