Dramatic flash flood hits NYC subway station as commuters watch in horror
Footage taken by an eyewitness onboard a carriage on Monday (14 July) shows torrents of water rushing into the platform at 28th Street Station as horrified onlookers watched on.
A later clip shows the water entering a subway carriage, as passengers pull their legs up off the floor.
A flash flood warning was issued for all five boroughs of New York City, and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency due to flash flooding and 'high levels of rainfall' in parts of the state.
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Reuters
6 hours ago
- Reuters
Beijing's extreme rain 'trap' kills at least 30, displaces thousands
BEIJING, July 29 (Reuters) - Extreme weather killed at least 30 people in Beijing after a year's worth of rain fell in less than a week, forcing the relocation of more than 80,000 people, damaging roads and cutting off power and communications in more than 130 villages. Hundreds of flights and a number of train services were delayed or suspended as the storms peaked on Monday night, stretching the capital's disaster management capabilities and prompting some experts to call the city a rain "trap". Most of the rain had converged on Beijing's mountainous north near the Great Wall, with at least 28 deaths reported in the district of Miyun and two in Yanqing, Xinhua reported. The state-run news agency did not say when or how the deaths occurred. "The flood came in an instant, you just had no buffer," said Zhai, 33, who runs a grocery shop in Miyun, now a disaster zone amid collapsed bridges, mangled cars and shattered pipelines. She showed Reuters the marks left behind as the floodwaters receded. They had risen to 1.5 metres (4.92 ft), submerging her shop for hours and ruining her food and beverage stocks. Liu, who owns a nearby restaurant, was on the verge of tears as she stared at the overturned stools and mud-covered table-tops in her eatery. Large appliances like fridges had sat submerged for hours and were likely damaged, said her husband Yang, estimating the damage at more than 100,000 yuan ($14,000). Heavy rains began on July 23 and peaked around Beijing and surrounding provinces on Monday, with Miyun experiencing rainfall of up to 573.5 mm (22.6 inches) - levels local media described as "extremely destructive". The average annual rainfall in Beijing is around 600 mm. The most intense downpour occurred on Saturday in Beijing's hilly Huairou, where 95.3 mm of rain fell in one hour. "The cumulative amount of precipitation has been extremely high - reaching 80–90% of the annual total in just a few days in some areas," said Xuebin Zhang of the University of Victoria in Canada and CEO of the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium. "Very few systems are designed to handle such an intense volume of rainfall over such a short period," Zhang said. The local topography - mountains to the west and north - "trapped" the moist air and forced it upward, amplifying the deluge, he said. China's usually arid north has seen record rains in recent years, with some scientists linking it to global warming. In the summer of 2023, heavy rain and flooding killed at least 33 people in Beijing. Rainfall in the city of Xingtai in the neighbouring Hebei province exceeded 1,000 mm in two days - double the yearly average. Heavy rain also pounded the province of Hebei and the city of Tianjin near Beijing. In Hebei, eight people were killed as a landslide hit a village on Monday, after the region received six months' worth of rain over the weekend. Four remained missing. In two villages in Tianjin on Monday, only the roofs of single-storey houses were visible, China Central Television (CCTV) reported. The emergency management ministry said the disaster relief situation had been "complex and severe". Residents pleaded for faster rescue efforts in posts on social media platform Weibo. "The flood is still coming, and there is still no power or signal, and I still can't get in touch with my family!" a Weibo user wrote on Tuesday morning. ($1 = 7.1767 Chinese yuan)
The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Four dead and eight missing after torrential rain causes landslide in northern China
Four people died and eight were missing after a landslide triggered by heavy rainfall struck Luanping in northern China 's Hebei province, CCTV reported on Monday. Rescue efforts were underway, the state broadcaster said. The landslide followed an intense overnight downpour in Fuping, a county in the industrial city of Baoding, where rainfall reached a record 145mm per hour. Torrential rainfall intensified across Beijing and surrounding provinces in northern China on Monday, heightening the threat of floods and landslides and prompting the evacuation of over 4,400 residents, authorities said. Last week, Typhoon Wipha wreaked havoc across China, killing dozens of people, uprooting trees, causing landslides, and leaving thousands without power. Wipha battered cities such as Yangjiang, Zhanjiang and Maoming with winds of over 118kmph and torrential rain before making landfall in southern Guangdong province last Sunday. In Beijing 's Miyun district, relentless downpours triggered flash floods, impacting several villages, CCTV said on Monday. Images shared on China 's WeChat platform showed vehicles drifting along submerged roads, with floodwaters rising high enough to partially engulf residential buildings. Hebei is facing some of its heaviest and most devastating rainfall in recent years, setting off deadly landslides, flash floods, and large-scale evacuations. Relentless rains began sweeping through Hebei, Tianjin, and Shanxi in northern China in early July, triggering widespread flood warnings. But it is the latter half of the month that has seen the worst of the deluge. Power outages have impacted over 10,000 residents in the region, according to CCTV. Northern China in general has faced unprecedented rainfall in recent years, placing densely populated areas like Beijing at heightened risk of flooding. Some researchers attribute this surge in rainfall, especially in the typically arid north, to the effects of global warming. The recent storms form part of a broader pattern of extreme weather events linked to the East Asian monsoon, which continues to disrupt daily life and economic activity across the world's second-largest economy. Among the hardest hit areas from the latest rainfall was Xiwanzi Village in Shicheng town, near the Miyun reservoir, where authorities relocated more than 100 villagers to a local primary school for shelter, authorities said on Monday. Authorities in Beijing reported the Miyun reservoir had reached an unprecedented inflow peak of 6,550 cubic metres per second, the highest on record. Meanwhile, the neighbouring province of Shanxi experienced severe flooding, with state media footage showing powerful torrents sweeping across roads and submerging fields, trees and crops. In Beijing 's Pinggu district, two sections of a road deemed high-risk were closed off as a precaution. Emergency crews have been deployed in several cities for rescue operations, including in Datong, where contact was lost with a motorist caught in the floods while driving a Ford, according to the People's Daily. China's water resources ministry has issued targeted flood alerts for 11 provinces and regions, among them Beijing and Hebei, warning of the potential for flash floods from smaller rivers and mountainous runoff. In response to the crisis, authorities have announced an emergency relief fund to assist Hebei with infrastructure repairs. The money will go towards rebuilding damaged roads, bridges, embankments, and public facilities like schools and hospitals. In July last year, China's seasonal 'plum rains' – so named for their timing with the ripening of plums – inflicted over $10bn in economic damage.
Reuters
a day ago
- Reuters
Four killed, eight missing as heavy rain soaks northern China
HONG KONG, July 28 (Reuters) - Heavy rain intensified around Beijing and nearby provinces on Monday, with four people killed in a landslide in northern Hebei and eight people missing, as authorities warned of intensifying conditions and heightened disaster risks in the coming days. Authorities relocated more than 4,400 people as colossal rain continued to pound the suburban area of Miyun in Beijing causing flash floods and landslides, impacting many villages, state broadcaster CCTV reported. Images circulated on China's Wechat app showed areas of Miyun where cars and trucks were floating on a flooded road where water levels had risen so high that it had submerged part of a residential building. Electricity cuts are also affecting more than 10,000 people, in the area, CCTV said. Northern China has seen record precipitation in recent years, exposing densely populated cities, including Beijing, to flood risks. Some scientists link the increased rainfall in China's usually arid north to global warming. China's Central Meteorological Observatory said that heavy rainfall would continue to drench northern China over the next three days. Beijing issued its highest level flood alert on Monday, the official Xinhua news agency said. The storms are part of the broader pattern of extreme weather across China due to the East Asian monsoon, which has caused disruptions in the world's second-largest economy. Xiwanzi Village in Shicheng Town, near Miyun Reservoir, was severely affected, CCTV said on Monday with an additional 100 villagers transferred to a primary school for shelter. It comes after the maximum flood peak flow into the Miyun reservoir reached a record high of 6550 cubic meters per second, Beijing authorities said on Sunday. In neighbouring Shanxi province, videos from state media showed roads inundated by strong gushing currents and submerged vegetation including crops and trees. Shaanxi province, home to China's historic city of Xian, also issued flash flood disaster risk warnings on Monday. In Beijing's Pinggu District, two high-risk road sections have been sealed, authorities said. Authorities are carrying out search and rescue work across cities including Datong, where a driver in a Ford car has lost contact while driving in the floods, the People's Daily reported. China's Water Resources Ministry has issued targeted flood warnings to 11 provinces and regions, including Beijing and neighbouring Hebei, for floods from small and midsize rivers and mountain torrents. Two were dead and two missing in Hebei province, CCTV said on Sunday morning. Overnight rain dumped a record 145 mm (5.7 inches) per hour on Fuping in the industrial city of Baoding. China's National Development and Reform Commission said on Monday that it was urgently arranging 50 million yuan ($6.98 million) to support Hebei. The funds would be used to repair damaged roads and bridges, water conservancy embankments, schools and hospitals in the disaster area. The NDRC said it was "promoting the restoration of normal life and production as soon as possible." Chinese authorities closely monitor extreme rainfall and severe flooding are, as they challenge the country's ageing flood defences, threaten to displace millions and wreak havoc on China's $2.8 trillion agricultural sector. ($1 = 7.1675 Chinese yuan renminbi)
