BEIJING, Sept. 1  -- China's top observatory has issued a storm alert for north China, as some parts of Beijing and Hebei Province will be hit by heavy rainstorms on Tuesday.

The National Meteorological Center (NMC) raised the alert from blue to yellow late Monday. China has a four-tier warning system for severe weather, with red being the most serious, followed by orange, yellow and blue.

It forecast that storms in Hebei, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Tianjin and Beijing, with the western and northern parts of Beijing and central Hebei to see downpours from 100 to 180 millimeters.

The NMC advised precautions against waterlogging and floods.

During the same period, provinces of Sichuan and Hubei and Chongqing municipality will also see heavy rain, the center added.