At least 10 die in northwestern China after flash floods – DW – 08/08/2025
At least 10 people have died and 33 remain missing after flash foods in Yuzhong County in China's north central Gansu province, Chinese state media reported on Friday.
"From August 7, continuous heavy rain... has triggered flash floods. As of 3:30 p.m. (0730 GMT) on August 8, 10 people have died and 33 are missing," state broadcaster CCTV reported.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has demanded the "utmost effort" in rescuing the missing people, CCTV reported him as saying.
Owing to the "frequent occurrence of extreme weather," Xi ordered all regions to "resolutely overcome complacency" while increasing efforts to identify risks.
Heavy rains since Thursday have caused flash floods and at least one landslide in Guangdong province, according to CCTV.
The floods meant no power and telecommunications services in the Xinglong mountain area, leaving more than 4,000 people across four villages stranded.
Natural disasters are common across China, particularly in the summer when some areas experience heavy rains while others suffer from soaring temperatures.
Last month, heavy rains in northern Beijing killed 44 people, with the capital's rural suburbs hit particularly hard.
China is the world's biggest emitter of the greenhouse gases that drive climate change and contribute to making extreme weather more common.
The country is also a renewable energy powerhouse that aims to make its economy carbon-neutral by 2060.
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DW
5 days ago
- DW
At least 10 die in northwestern China after flash floods – DW – 08/08/2025
Several people have died and dozens are missing after heavy rains in Yuzhong County, Gansu province. Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for the "utmost effort" as rescue missions continue. At least 10 people have died and 33 remain missing after flash foods in Yuzhong County in China's north central Gansu province, Chinese state media reported on Friday. "From August 7, continuous heavy rain... has triggered flash floods. As of 3:30 p.m. (0730 GMT) on August 8, 10 people have died and 33 are missing," state broadcaster CCTV reported. Chinese President Xi Jinping has demanded the "utmost effort" in rescuing the missing people, CCTV reported him as saying. Owing to the "frequent occurrence of extreme weather," Xi ordered all regions to "resolutely overcome complacency" while increasing efforts to identify risks. Heavy rains since Thursday have caused flash floods and at least one landslide in Guangdong province, according to CCTV. The floods meant no power and telecommunications services in the Xinglong mountain area, leaving more than 4,000 people across four villages stranded. Natural disasters are common across China, particularly in the summer when some areas experience heavy rains while others suffer from soaring temperatures. Last month, heavy rains in northern Beijing killed 44 people, with the capital's rural suburbs hit particularly hard. China is the world's biggest emitter of the greenhouse gases that drive climate change and contribute to making extreme weather more common. The country is also a renewable energy powerhouse that aims to make its economy carbon-neutral by 2060.
Int'l Business Times
05-08-2025
- Int'l Business Times
Beijing Lifts Rain Alert After Evacuating Over 80,000
Beijing lifted a severe weather alert on Tuesday but warned residents to stay vigilant against natural disasters after authorities evacuated more than 82,000 people over fears of more deadly floods in the Chinese capital. The municipal weather office had imposed a red rainstorm warning -- the highest in a four-tier system -- on Monday, forecasting heavy downpours until Tuesday morning. The office lifted the alert early Tuesday morning, saying in a social media statement the weather system had weakened as it drifted eastwards. But it continued to warn of isolated downpours across outlying parts of the city, adding that people "must not let up after strong rains have passed" as landslides or other disasters may follow. Authorities evacuated over 82,000 people at risk from heavy rainfall as of Monday evening, state news agency Xinhua said, citing the city's flood control headquarters. Officials warned of flooding risks in the northeastern suburb of Miyun -- the hardest hit by the recent deluge -- as well as southwestern Fangshan, western Mentougou and northern Huairou. Last week, floods in Beijing's northern suburbs killed at least 44 people and left nine missing, according to official figures. Some 31 fatalities occurred at an elderly care centre in Miyun -- prompting a local official to admit "gaps" in disaster readiness. "Our knowledge of extreme weather was lacking. This tragic lesson has warned us that putting the people first, putting human life first, is more than a slogan," Yu Weiguo, Miyun's ruling Communist Party boss, said at the time. Residents of flood-hit areas told AFP journalists that they had been surprised at the speed with which the rushing water had inundated homes and devastated villages. At a meeting on Monday, the municipal government stressed the need to "restore the normal order of life and production in post-disaster areas as quickly as possible". Urgent tasks included road repairs, electricity and water resumption and the refurbishment of schools, hospitals and elderly care homes, officials said, according to a statement on a city social media account. China's public security ministry has also warned people to be on guard against "rumours", including exaggerating the extent of natural disasters to create panic, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Tuesday. China has been lashed by heavy rains in recent weeks, with heavy flooding in the north followed by intense precipiation along the southern coast. Parts of Hong Kong were brought to a standstill on Tuesday by flooding caused by heavy rains, after the highest-tier rainstorm warning was issued for the fourth time in eight days. Natural disasters are common across China, particularly in the summer, when some regions experience heavy rain while others bake in searing heat. China is the world's biggest emitter of the greenhouse gases that drive climate change and contribute to making extreme weather more frequent and intense. But it is also a global renewable energy powerhouse that aims to make its massive economy carbon-neutral by 2060. Taxis and other vehicles drive along a waterlogged Gloucester Road in Hong Kong's Wanchai district on August 5, 2025, amid a black rainstorm warning issued by the city's weather observatory AFP
Int'l Business Times
31-07-2025
- Int'l Business Times
Japan Lifts Tsunami Advisory After Russia Quake
Japan's weather office on Thursday lifted a tsunami advisory imposed a day earlier after Russia's Far East was rocked by one of the strongest earthquakes on record. "There is currently no coastal area for which tsunami warnings or advisories are in force," the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said on its website. Millions of people were put on high alert in countries around the Pacific Ocean after the 8.8-magnitude quake off Russia's Kamchatka peninsula on Wednesday. The worst damage was seen in Russia, where a tsunami crashed through the port of Severo-Kurilsk and submerged the local fishing plant, officials said. Russian state television footage showed buildings and debris swept into the sea. The initial quake caused limited damage and only light injuries. Fears of a repeat of the December 2004 tsunami that killed 220,000 people in 11 nations -- the legacy of which was to improve early warning systems -- were not realised. In Japan, where a massive earthquake and tsunami killed 15,000 people in 2011, almost two million people were ordered to higher ground, but the biggest wave was 1.3 metres (4.3 feet). The only reported fatality was a woman killed when her car fell off a cliff in Japan as she tried to escape on Wednesday, local media reported. Japan downgraded its tsunami alert to an advisory later on Wednesday, and waves of up to 0.7 metres were still being observed on Thursday. "The tsunami warning was lifted at 4:30 pm (0630 GMT) after it was determined that the tsunamis would not grow any larger," the JMA said. The beaching of four sperm whales on a beach in Japan was initially blamed on the earthquake but officials said the animals had washed up a day earlier. Local surfer Fumiko Udagawa said that it was the first time that such big whales were washed up in the 20 years she has lived in the area. "As surfers, we are constantly worried now about the sea water being so warm, even towards winter," the 56-year-old told AFP. "I wonder if this (stranded whales) is also a result of global warming." Akira Komatsu, a seasonal visitor, wondered if the whales washing up were a precursor of the quake. "I heard that earthquakes affect the magnetic condition underwater, and whales detect magnetics," the 61-year-old told AFP. The beaching of four sperm whales on a Japanese beach was initially blamed on the earthquake AFP
