Floods trigger emergency response in south, east China

Major floods have occurred in southern and eastern parts of China following days of heavy rain, prompting emergency response by central and local government authorities.

The Ministry of Natural Resources on Wednesday issued a level III alert for floods, the third highest level, in the provincial level regions of Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangdong and Guangxi, and dispatched work groups to the affected areas to guide flood prevention and control works.

In Shaoguan City of south China’s Guangdong Province, firefighters had evacuated more than 6,200 rural residents from chest-high flood waters from Monday to Wednesday, as rainstorms inundated bridges and low-lying villages.

The heavy rain in the region eased off on Wednesday morning.

In Wuzhou City of south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the water level on major rivers had surpassed the warning level.

Officials with the local hydrology station said the flood peak had passed through the city smoothly on early Wednesday.

“The water level as monitored by Wuzhou Hydrology Station on the Xijiang River is decreasing slowly. The flood peak recorded so far today reached 39,200 cubic meters per second, which is unprecedented over the past five years. The level III alert for flooding conditions is still in place here,” said Long Heng, Head of Wuzhou Hydrology Station.

In east China’s Fujian Province, persistent heavy rains have disrupted the local railway services, with nearly 80 train runs canceled or re-marshaled on Wednesday.