State troops have joined disaster relief efforts after torrential rains triggered flooding and landslides in northern China, which have claimed at least 38 lives and caused widespread damage to infrastructure. The deluge, which began last Wednesday, has affected 11 regions, with the capital, Beijing, and surrounding provinces being the most severely impacted. The National Meteorological Center has predicted further heavy rainfall in the next 24 hours, raising concerns about the potential for additional casualties and damage.
Beijing’s Miyun district recorded 534mm of rainfall, which is nearly the city’s average annual rain volume of 600mm, while the neighboring city of Baoding experienced an even more extreme downpour of 540mm in just eight hours. These record-breaking rainfall levels have led to the evacuation of over 80,000 people in Beijing and nearby areas, with additional thousands being relocated in southwest China. The flooding has damaged roads, cut off power, and triggered landslides, particularly near Chengde City in Hebei province, where eight people were killed and four are missing.
President Xi Jinping has ordered an ‘all-out’ search and rescue operation to minimize the loss of life, with state troops, including the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and People’s Armed Police Force, deployed to assist in the relief efforts. The National Meteorological Center has warned that some regions may receive up to 300mm of rainfall in the next 24 hours, further complicating the situation. This extreme weather has exposed northern China’s densely populated cities to significant flood risks, a problem that has been highlighted by the catastrophic 2023 floods, which caused 1 million people to be displaced.
Other countries across Asia have also suffered from water-related disasters this summer, with the tropical storm Wipha and the East Asian monsoon combining to cause damage in Southeast Asia. These events underscore the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events, raising concerns about the region’s preparedness and resilience to such disasters.