Latest news with #PlumRains
The Independent
10 hours ago
- Climate
- The Independent
China on high alert for floods as record rain triggers landslides and building collapse
Swathes of China are on high alert for flash floods and landslides as unrelenting rain triggered deadly disasters and forced evacuations in multiple provinces. The torrential downpours, part of the annual 'Plum Rains' season, have swept from the southwest through central China and up to the northeast, prompting red alerts in Sichuan, Gansu and Liaoning provinces. In Henan province's Taiping town, rescue workers recovered five bodies and were searching for three missing people after a nearby river burst its banks, unleashing a sudden flash flood. More than 1,000 emergency personnel have been deployed to assist residents, state media reported. Vice premier Zhang Guoqing urged officials in Hebei to act urgently to protect lives as the rain continued. In neighbouring Gansu province, two people died when heavy rains caused a landslide at a construction site. Dramatic scenes unfolded in Guangxi, where video footage showed a five-storey building under construction collapsing into the Lengshui river as the ground beneath it gave way in waterlogged soil. The river saw its worst flooding since at least 2005, local media reported. In Guangxi 's Pingliu village, landslides destroyed two houses and forced the evacuation of 21 people. The Plum Rains have disrupted travel, with train services to Beijing suspended and flights delayed or cancelled at one of the capital's airports. The Chinese finance ministry this week announced an additional £14.3m in emergency disaster relief funds to support affected regions in Guizhou and Hunan provinces. The allocation followed a disbursement of £16.3m on 23 June. Guizhou's Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, including Rongjiang and Congjiang counties, have been particularly hit hard. Rongjiang, known as the birthplace of China's popular Village Super League football tournament, has suffered two severe floods in less than a week, with the stadium submerged twice in five days. The ministry said the funds would go towards meeting urgent needs, including search and rescue operations, relocation of affected residents, temporary living assistance, and rebuilding of damaged homes. Authorities said the support would help restore daily life and economic activity as quickly as possible in the worst-hit communities. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, increasingly linked by experts to the climate crisis, are testing China's ageing flood defences and threatening its vast agricultural heartland. Last year, economic losses from similar storms exceeded £7bn. The national meteorological centre forecasts more storms across the north and the west even as the east coast bakes under a scorching sun.
Malay Mail
13 hours ago
- Climate
- Malay Mail
Deadly floods sweep China's north and west as ‘Plum Rains' trigger red alerts, evacuations
BEIJING, July 3 — China's north and west braced for more flash floods and landslides on Thursday as annual 'Plum Rains' left a trail of destruction and prompted the mobilisation of thousands of rescue workers to pull people from floodwaters. Red alerts were issued tracing the rains as they moved from the south-western province of Sichuan through the northwestern province of Gansu, and up to the northeastern province of Liaoning. While some Beijing-bound trains were suspended and one of the city's airports experienced flight delays and cancellations late on Wednesday and into the early hours. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, which meteorologists link to climate change, increasingly pose major challenges for policymakers as they threaten to overwhelm ageing flood defences, displace millions and wreak havoc on China's US$2.8 trillion (RM13.9 trillion) agricultural sector. Economic losses from natural disasters exceeded US$10 billion last July, when the 'Plum Rains' — named for their timing coinciding with plums ripening along China's Yangtze River during the East Asia monsoon — typically reach their peak. State media said over 1,000 rescue workers were dispatched to the town of Taiping in central China's Henan province on Wednesday, after torrential rains caused a nearby river to burst its banks, killing five people in a flash flood and leaving three others missing. Two more people died in a landslide at a construction side in Gansu province caused by heavy rains over Wednesday and Thursday, a separate state media report said. During a two-day visit to the northern province of Hebei, which borders Henan, Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing urged local officials to step up efforts ahead of anticipated heavy rain to minimise casualties by preemptively evacuating people, state news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday. While China has a nationwide severe weather monitoring and forecasting system, scientists say very localised predictions remain a challenge, testing the ability of particularly rural communities with fewer forecasting resources to evacuate local populations quickly ahead of any extreme weather. Further south, in China's Guangxi region, several buildings slid down hillsides over the last two days after their foundations gave way in waterlogged soil, local media reported. Footage verified by Reuters shows a five-storey building under construction in the town of Xinzhou collapsing into a nearby river within seconds, as the ground beneath it suddenly gave way. Between June 30 and July 1, the Lengshui River which flows through Xinzhou experienced its worst flooding in records going back to 2005, said a separate local media report, citing the Ministry of Water Resources. The report also instructed readers on how to recognise early signs of flash flooding. Meanwhile, in Pingliu Village, some 80km west of Xinzhou, 21 people from seven households were evacuated on Tuesday after a landslide collapsed two houses and damaged four others, other local media reported. In contrast, the national meteorological centre forecast scorching heat along the country's eastern seaboard. — Reuters
Al Arabiya
15 hours ago
- Climate
- Al Arabiya
China's north and west on alert after sweeping rains trigger deadly floods
China's north and west braced for more flash floods and landslides on Thursday as annual 'Plum Rains' left a trail of destruction and prompted the mobilization of thousands of rescue workers to pull people from floodwaters. Red alerts were issued tracing the rains as they moved from the southwestern province of Sichuan through the northwestern province of Gansu, and up to the northeastern province of Liaoning. While some Beijing-bound trains were suspended and one of the city's airports experienced flight delays and cancellations late on Wednesday and into the early hours. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, which meteorologists link to climate change, increasingly pose major challenges for policymakers as they threaten to overwhelm ageing flood defenses, displace millions and wreak havoc on China's $2.8 trillion agricultural sector. Economic losses from natural disasters exceeded $10 billion last July, when the 'Plum Rains' - named for their timing coinciding with plums ripening along China's Yangtze River during the East Asia monsoon - typically reach their peak. State media said over 1,000 rescue workers were dispatched to the town of Taiping in central China's Henan province on Wednesday, after torrential rains caused a nearby river to burst its banks, killing five people in a flash flood and leaving three others missing. Two more people died in a landslide at a construction side in Gansu province caused by heavy rains over Wednesday and Thursday, a separate state media report said. During a two-day visit to the northern province of Hebei, which borders Henan, Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing urged local officials to step up efforts ahead of anticipated heavy rain to minimize casualties by preemptively evacuating people, state news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday. While China has a nationwide severe weather monitoring and forecasting system, scientists say very localized predictions remain a challenge, testing the ability of particularly rural communities with fewer forecasting resources to evacuate local populations quickly ahead of any extreme weather. Further south, in China's Guangxi region, several buildings slid down hillsides over the last two days after their foundations gave way in waterlogged soil, local media reported. Footage verified by Reuters shows a five-storey building under construction in the town of Xinzhou collapsing into a nearby river within seconds, as the ground beneath it suddenly gave way. Between June 30 and July 1, the Lengshui River which flows through Xinzhou experienced its worst flooding in records going back to 2005, said a separate local media report, citing the Ministry of Water Resources. The report also instructed readers on how to recognize early signs of flash flooding. Meanwhile, in Pingliu Village, some 80 km (50 miles) west of Xinzhou, 21 people from seven households were evacuated on Tuesday after a landslide collapsed two houses and damaged four others, other local media reported. In contrast, the national meteorological center forecast scorching heat along the country's eastern seaboard.
CNA
18 hours ago
- Climate
- CNA
China's north and west on alert after sweeping rains trigger deadly floods
BEIJING: China's north and west braced for flash floods and landslides on Thursday (Jul 3) as annual 'Plum Rains' left a trail of destruction and prompted the mobilisation of thousands of rescue workers to pull people from floodwaters. Red alerts were issued tracing the rains as they moved from the southwestern province of Sichuan through the northwestern province of Gansu, and up to the northeastern province of Liaoning. State media said over 1,000 rescue workers were dispatched to the town of Taiping in central China's Henan province on Wednesday, after torrential rains caused a nearby river to burst its banks, killing five people in a flash flood and leaving three others missing. By Thursday morning, some trains into the capital Beijing had been suspended, while one of the capital city's airports saw flight delays and cancellations late on Wednesday and into the early hours. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, which meteorologists link to climate change, increasingly pose major challenges for policymakers as they threaten to overwhelm ageing flood defences, displace millions and wreak havoc on China's US$2.8 trillion agricultural sector. Economic losses from natural disasters exceeded US$10 billion last July, when the 'Plum Rains' - named for their timing coinciding with plums ripening along China's Yangtze River during the East Asia monsoon - typically reach their peak. In China's southwestern province of Guangxi, several buildings slid down hillsides over the last two days after their foundations gave way in waterlogged soil, local media reported.
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
China's north and west on alert after sweeping rains trigger deadly floods
BEIJING (Reuters) -China's north and west braced for flash floods and landslides on Thursday as annual 'Plum Rains' left a trail of destruction and prompted the mobilisation of thousands of rescue workers to pull people from floodwaters. Red alerts were issued tracing the rains as they moved from the southwestern province of Sichuan through the northwestern province of Gansu, and up to the northeastern province of Liaoning. State media said over 1,000 rescue workers were dispatched to the town of Taiping in central China's Henan province on Wednesday, after torrential rains caused a nearby river to burst its banks, killing five people in a flash flood and leaving three others missing. By Thursday morning, some trains into the capital Beijing had been suspended, while one of the capital city's airports saw flight delays and cancellations late on Wednesday and into the early hours. Extreme rainfall and severe flooding, which meteorologists link to climate change, increasingly pose major challenges for policymakers as they threaten to overwhelm ageing flood defences, displace millions and wreak havoc on China's $2.8 trillion agricultural sector. Economic losses from natural disasters exceeded $10 billion last July, when the 'Plum Rains' - named for their timing coinciding with plums ripening along China's Yangtze River during the East Asia monsoon - typically reach their peak. In China's southwestern province of Guangxi, several buildings slid down hillsides over the last two days after their foundations gave way in waterlogged soil, local media reported. In contrast, the national meteorological centre forecast scorching heat along the country's eastern seaboard.
