Latest news with #Nanxi
The Star
31-07-2025
- Climate
- The Star
China releases US$77 million relief fund as casualties mount in Beijing floods
China has allocated millions in emergency funds to regions devastated by heavy downpours and floods that claimed at least 40 lives in Beijing and its neighbouring provinces. A total of 550 million yuan (US$76.7 million) has been allocated by the central government to flood-hit regions for disaster relief, with 200 million yuan directed to Beijing's response to the floods. The torrential rains led to 30 deaths in Beijing as of Monday, according to state media reports on Tuesday. Chinese leaders called for all-out efforts in disaster relief after 'heavy casualties' in the city and other parts of the country. July and August are the rainy season in China, and the wet weather has hit Beijing, the neighbouring province of Hebei, the northeastern province of Liaoning and the eastern coastal province of Shandong, causing 'heavy casualties and property losses', state news agency Xinhua reported on Monday night. Videos of flooding and landslides, as well as rescue efforts, have been circulating on social media. Many of the online posts show houses submerged and destroyed, with debris embedded in the mud-choked ground or drifting in floodwaters. One online commenter, calling herself Nanxi, described her evacuation on Sunday from Miyun – the mountainous district northeast of Beijing that was worst affected – as 'not an escape room game, but a real-life ordeal'. 'In less than half an hour, the first floor of the villa we were staying in was completely submerged. Floodwaters from the mountains rose to shoulder height,' she wrote. More than 37,000 people from 149 villages were forced to relocate from Miyun, where heavy rain since Saturday has caused flash flooding and landslides, according to local media reports. In its Monday report, Xinhua cited instructions by President Xi Jinping for all possible steps to be taken to prevent flooding, for effective deployment of disaster relief supplies to ensure immediate responses and for quick handling of any sudden emergencies. 'The heavy rainfall and flooding in Miyun have caused heavy casualties. It is imperative to make all-out efforts to search for and rescue missing individuals, properly relocate affected residents, and do everything possible to minimise casualties,' Premier Li Qiang said, according to Xinhua on Monday. The death toll was released on Tuesday morning, hours after top leaders' warning. It stood at 28 in Miyun as of Monday, and a total of 134 villages across the city suffered blackouts. Two further fatalities were reported in other parts of Beijing, Xinhua said on Tuesday. Neighbouring Hebei province was also hit hard, with a landslide in Luanping county leading to at least eight deaths. Intensive search and rescue operations were under way for four missing people, state media reported. Hebei authorities have yet to release comprehensive casualty figures from the disaster area, where more rainfall is also expected later on Tuesday. There were also reports of two deaths from floods in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. The Beijing municipal government said the maximum inflow into the Miyun Reservoir had reached 6,550 cubic metres (231,300 cubic feet) per second by 10am on Sunday – a record for the facility, which was built in 1960, and the highest flow recorded for the river since 1951. The reservoir is the largest comprehensive water conservancy project in northern China and used mainly for municipal and industrial water supply for the capital. From Thursday to midnight on Monday, the average rainfall in the capital was 165.9mm (6.5 inches), with the maximum recorded precipitation reaching 543.4mm (21.4 inches) – which qualifies as an extreme rainstorm, The Beijing News reported on Tuesday. Beijing's average annual rainfall is around 600mm (23.6 inches). The city downgraded the rainstorm alert on Tuesday morning and lifted it completely in the afternoon. The downpour has tested Beijing's infrastructure and flood prevention capacity, coming just two years after the city and the country's northern regions endured a once-in-140-years torrential rainstorm. The resulting floods in 2023 exposed north China's critical vulnerabilities in flood prevention, including a lack of water conservancy facilities in some river basins, insufficient flood control infrastructure, and poor maintenance of flood detention zones. China issued 1 trillion yuan in special treasury bonds in 2023 to support post-disaster reconstruction and improvements to disaster prevention and relief. The drainage systems in most Chinese cities are designed to withstand an hourly rainfall intensity of approximately 30-50mm – a standard that was far exceeded in the capital, which experienced 95.3mm of rain per hour in recent days, according to The Beijing News. In 2021, Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province, was also hit by downpours and floods, which resulted in the death of nearly 400 people. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
New Straits Times
12-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New Straits Times
#SHOWBIZ: Personal dilemmas sound out in play
MALAYSIANS might be more familiar with Teochew opera, but there is another southern Chinese art form called Nanguan, or Liyuan opera. This unique form has captivated Malaysian director and writer Koh Choon Eiow, who is preparing to stage a contemporary production titled 'Apostate' from June 20 to 22 at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, in collaboration with the Taipei Economic & Cultural Office in Malaysia. 'Apostate' weaves together two compelling narratives: a classic tale and a modern story. One is a beloved Nanxi play from the Song Dynasty, dating back 900 years, which recounts the story of Zhu Bian, an envoy captured and forced to marry his captor's daughter. After a decade, he is released, torn between his gratitude for his new wife and his loyalty to the wife he left behind at home. Koh has skilfully intertwined this ancient dilemma with the modern story of a prisoner. Both characters are compelled to weigh their personal struggle for survival against their allegiance to family and state. Koh finds the psychology of a "traitor" deeply intriguing. "If you look back at history, there are plenty of stories and literature depicting 'authoritarians' or 'victims', but rarely do we get to see or hear about traitors whose ambiguous identities sometimes lie between the two, blurring the boundaries," he says. "So the traditional opera script, Zhu Bian, and its portrayal of a 'loyal minister' sparked an idea that perhaps we could use the contrast between a 'traitor' and a 'loyalist' to explore shifts in emotional convictions and identity." This initial thought led to extensive research into the depictions of traitors during Taiwan's 1950s, drawing from books such as 'The Political Archives Speak', 'Letters Never Delivered' and 'The Walking Tree'. GROUND-BREAKING COLLABORATION 'Apostate' results from a pioneering collaboration between approaching theatre, co-founded by Koh and Cheng Yin-chen, and Taiwan's Gang-a Tsui Theatre, established by the late Chou Yih-chan, a renowned champion of Nanguan. The production has garnered significant acclaim, winning the grand prize at the 22nd Taishin Arts Award and the Jury Prize at the 35th Golden Melody Awards for Traditional Arts and Music. This was a notable achievement, as it received recognition from the traditional opera community and the contemporary theatre world. UNCONVENTIONAL PATH Koh's interest in the arts was unexpected, even to him. "Why I chose a path in the arts remains a mystery to me, especially when my entire family is in the food industry," he muses. "It almost feels as if some invisible force gently nudged me onto this path." Growing up in northern Malaysia, where his family ran a bustling restaurant, shaped his early years. "The restaurant was always busy, full of customers coming and going — dropping in for tea or a meal, chatting about everything under the sun," he recalls. "I was curious about all these different people — where did they come from? Where were they headed?" During his childhood, his family frequently attended open-air Teochew opera performances and he would join them. "The performers fascinated me — the way they told stories captivated me. Perhaps that's when I became deeply interested in how stories are told," he reflects. "Living in a culturally and linguistically diverse society like Malaysia enriched my worldview and provided me with multiple lenses through which to see the world." After finishing high school, Koh moved to Kuala Lumpur and enrolled in the Malaysian Institute of Arts to study drama. "There, two mentors — Madam Soon Choon Mee and Leong Chi Sin — shaped my artistic journey," he says. "They opened my eyes about theatre and drama, which allowed me to venture into a whole new creative landscape." During his time at MIA, he delved extensively into the development of Taiwanese theatre, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s, which significantly influenced his direction. A DIRECTOR'S VISION Today, Koh is the director of approaching theatre and a grantee of the Asian Cultural Council Fellowship programme. He is a contemporary theatre director and performer, actively involved in front and behind the scenes of Taiwan's experimental theatre. His works explore the diasporic memory and historical identity of contemporary Chinese people. Koh is renowned for his intricate arrangement of multiple soundtracks to create a flowing narrative. By using sound to build dimensions of time and space, he often creates a succinct and precise narrative style that is remarkably sharp. Based in Taiwan, Koh's last directorial effort in Malaysia was almost a decade ago with 'tiapa' in 2016. He shares an interesting, unplanned coincidence: "When we decided to stage this show on Zhu Bian in 2020, I discovered that he was in Jin for 16 years before he could finally return home. In 2004, I moved from Kuala Lumpur to Taipei to pursue my graduate studies, and in 2020, it marked my 16th year living in Taiwan." He describes this as an "uncanny coincidence — as if the voice of home was calling out to me". SOUND PERFORMANCE 'Apostate' will be performed in Mandarin with some dialect, featuring a cast of six who will showcase the beauty of Nanguan singing and the unique puppet-like postures employed in Liyuan opera. They will be accompanied by a live ensemble of six traditional musicians, including the well-known song 'Thank You, Princess'. Regarding the appeal of 'Apostate' for Malaysian audiences, Koh says: "I genuinely look forward to hearing from Malaysian audiences after the show, and finding out what piqued their interest and drew them in." He encourages audience members to "watch" by opening their ears and hearts as the play is largely driven by sound. "Every action in the show begins with an auditory element," he explains.
Los Angeles Times
19-02-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Nanxi Liu's Journey to Revolutionizing App Development
Nanxi Liu shares her inspiring journey from growing up with an immigrant background to co-founding a successful startup. She highlights how being a minority can be an advantage and stresses the importance of hard work. After finishing her education, Nanxi and her co-founders moved into a small apartment in Koreatown to save money, and as their startup grew, they moved to a larger house in Bel Air. These early experiences helped build the foundation for their company's success, which they eventually sold. Following this success, Nanxi co-founded Blaze, a platform that makes it easy to develop web and mobile apps without needing to code. Blaze uses AI to create data for these apps, making them more attractive to investors and clients. Nanxi believes in the power of positive influences and advises her younger self to pursue her ambitions fearlessly, emphasizing that big dreams are key to achieving success.
