SHENZHEN - The death toll has risen to nine after sudden strong rainfall triggered floods in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen Thursday night, local authorities said Friday.

Two others remained missing as of Friday evening, said a source with the city's emergency management bureau. A search is underway.

At around 9 p.m. Thursday, a rainstorm pounded Shenzhen, triggering floods that flushed away many dredging workers at different river sections in the districts of Luohu and Futian.

The average precipitation in three hours on Thursday night reached 65 millimeters in Luohu district, data from the Shenzhen Meteorological Bureau showed.

In one waterway section, the water level instantly jumped from one meter to four meters, sweeping away workers, said Fan Defan, deputy head of Luohu district government.