THE biggest shower in 40 years has flooded 1,563 homes in the city of Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province, and halted power supply in some residential areas, the city's anti-flooding headquarters said today.

Nineteen flooded schools had to stop classes, the headquarters said. No casualties have been reported.

The arrival of Typhoon Krosa and a cold front brought 191.3-millimeters of rainfall to the city from Sunday to Monday, breaking the previous record of 189.3 millimeter set in 1963.

Residents of the 1,563 homes had to use rafts to evacuate and a flooded transformer station caused a blackout of nearby areas.

Water levels in Xihu Lake, a famed scenic spot, exceeded the alert level and were rising five centimeters an hour. Landslides were reported in some parks.

The rain affected 210,000 people and caused direct losses of 365 million yuan. The city has evacuated 23, 578 people since Sunday and called 2,391 boats to port.

The city is busy draining the flooded areas and fixing the damaged facilities to secure electricity supply and resume traffic.