Recent torrential storms in southeast China have led to severe flooding and landslides, prompting the national weather service to issue its most severe rainstorm alert. The region has been hit hard by heavy rainfall over the past week, resulting in at least 71 reported deaths. Southern Guangdong province, with a population of 127 million, experiences annual flooding from April to September, but recent years have seen more intense rainstorms and severe flooding.
The storms have now moved inland, affecting southern central China, particularly Hunan province. The China Meteorological Administration raised the red rainstorm signal, indicating high risks of torrential rain in several provinces. The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has escalated its flood response to level 3 in Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi, and Hunan provinces.
In Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, heavy rainfall caused local rivers to rise to record levels, leading to flooding of city streets and subway tunnels. Emergency crews have been using rubber boats to transport residents to safety. While no deaths were immediately reported in Changsha, fatalities have been recorded in multiple provinces and cities.
Mountain torrents in Yuanlin county, Hunan, claimed five lives, bringing the death toll in the province to at least 13. In Taoyuan county, more than 300 villagers remain unreachable. In Anhui province, over 500,000 people in 29 cities and counties have been affected by relentless rainfall and flooding, with 64,000 forced to relocate.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has called for all-out efforts to protect lives and property as the country deals with heavy rains in the south and severe drought and record temperatures in the north. The climate crisis is exacerbating extreme weather events, making them more frequent and deadly across China.
Other regions in China are also experiencing earlier and longer extreme heat periods and droughts, leading to power shortages and disruptions in food and industrial supply chains.
