Road collapses into river in China following thunderstorms, gales and hailstorm in northern regions

Video: China's meteorological authority issued a blue alert for 24 hours

Video from China's Shanxi Province shows the moment a road collapsed and plunged into a river, sending several parked cars into the muddy water below following torrential downpours in the region.

The video emerged after China's meteorological authority issued a blue alert for 24 hours, warning of possible thunderstorms, gales and hailstorms in northern and some southern regions of the country.

Heavy rain swept parts of Gansu, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Hebei, Shandong, Liaoning and Yunnan provinces.

No one was injured following the collapse of the road in Shanxi, which shows cars hanging perilously on the side of the river bank following the collapse of the road.

A salvage operation is currently underway, according to local media, to rescue the vehicles and to repair the road.

China's CCTV news organisation said that the heavy rainfall caused the swelling of the famous Hukou waterfall that sits on the borders of the Shaanxi and Shanxi regions.

The waterfall's width ranges from 30-50 metres usually, but has now swelled to over 200 metres.