4 dead, over a dozen missing as extreme weather hits China
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Rescuers evacuate a villager from a flooded district in eastern China’s Fujian province.
PHOTO: AFP
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BEIJING – At least four people were killed when record rains hit parts of southern China, state media reported on June 18, while more than a dozen were missing even as the north baked under some of its highest temperatures in 2024.
Downpours “exceeding historical daily maximums” in some areas in Fujian province led to the four deaths, state news agency Xinhua said, citing the flood control headquarters of Shanghang county.
More than 66,000 people in the county have been affected by the extreme weather, Xinhua said, adding that “communications and electricity infrastructure… have not been fully restored”. It also warned of possible landslides.
It said “investigations into the situations of affected people” were under way.
In nearby Meizhou, Guangdong province, landslides on June 17 killed five people, left 15 missing and another 13 were “trapped” by early morning, state broadcaster CCTV reported on June 18.
CCTV footage showed upturned cars and damaged buildings near Meizhou, with residents in rubber boots picking through muddy, debris-laden streets to salvage their belongings.
Other images showed sections of a highway swept away by landslides and rescue workers in orange lifejackets steering dinghies through floodwaters to reach trapped villagers.
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for emergency workers to “make every effort to respond to disaster situations and do a good job of relief and rescue work to combat flooding and drought”, Xinhua said.
He instructed rescuers to “guarantee the security of people’s lives and property, and overall social stability”, it said.
Flooding has also hit the southern and central provinces of Guangxi and Hunan, as well as the north-western region of Xinjiang, where Xinhua said four people were missing after a flash flood near the city of Changji.
China’s north is also wilting under some of the year’s hottest weather.
The mercury was expected to soar to up to 39 deg C in the capital Beijing and the surrounding areas of Tianjin and Hebei, the National Meteorological Centre said.
The authorities have also moved to offer drought prevention and disaster relief in seven provinces across China’s north, east and centre.
China is enduring a summer of extreme weather, which scientists say is made more common by climate change.
Greenhouse gases, of which China is the world’s biggest emitter, are a key contributor to climate change. AFP
