Deadly Rains in China: Dozens Dead and Missing, Beijing Authorities Admit Unpreparedness for Bad Weather
Kyiv • UNN
China's capital suffered from extremely heavy rainfall, which caused the death of 44 people in the city, as well as the disappearance of 9. The Beijing authorities admitted gaps in their readiness for extreme weather conditions. In total, according to media reports, about 60 people died in northern China.
Over the past and current week, China's capital has suffered from extremely heavy rainfall. The number of victims is many dozens. Among the missing are local officials. Beijing has admitted "gaps" in its readiness for such excesses.
UNN reports with reference to Sing Tao (星島頭條).
Details
On Thursday, Beijing city authorities admitted they were unprepared for the heavy rains that flooded much of the capital and surrounding areas between July 23 and 29. As a result of the floods around Beijing, 44 people died. Nine are also considered missing.
Parts of northern China have been suffering from deadly rains and floods since last week. These events have forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. The rural suburbs of the capital were most affected, which increased the number of victims.
Among the missing are local officials working on search and rescue operations. This was stated at a press conference by Xia Linmao, a senior official in Beijing.
Xia Linmao confirmed that Beijing was affected by extremely heavy rainfall, which caused "a significant number of casualties and (other) losses."
Reference
In total, 60 people died due to heavy rains and floods in northern China.
The fact that 44 people died in Beijing last week was reported by the city hall at a press conference on Thursday.
The ruling elite admits problems with readiness to prevent the consequences of bad weather
The Communist Party of China also spoke out. They admitted gaps.
Our ability to forecast and warn about extreme weather conditions is insufficient, and disaster prevention and mitigation plans have not been fully developed
Our knowledge of extreme weather conditions was lacking. This tragic lesson warned us that putting people first, putting human life first, is more than just a slogan
Recall
UNN reported that the Beijing Meteorological Agency issued a landslide and mudslide warning for 10 districts of the city after heavy rains.
In northern China, including Beijing, 543.4 mm of precipitation fell between July 23 and 28, almost equal to the annual norm, causing floods and landslides. As a result of the bad weather, at least 38 people died, over 80,000 were evacuated, and infrastructure suffered significant damage.