China battles heavy rain, major flooding as thousands evacuated in Typhoon Gaemi’s wake

Heavy rainfall in central China’s Hunan province triggered three river dyke breaches in less than 20 hours and forced the evacuations of thousands of people, as water reached “record levels”, state media reported.

On Sunday evening, floodwaters breached two other dykes on the waterway – a tributary of the Xiang River – forcing more than 4,000 people to leave their homes, state media said.

“Due to the surge of the river, the water level has almost submerged tree trunks on either side of the river … as well as the ground floors of many homes,” state broadcaster CCTV reported on Monday.

On Sunday morning, 15 people were killed and six others injured after a severe landslide triggered by heavy rain swept away a guest house in the city of Hengyang, according to state media.

China’s top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, has issued 500 million yuan (US$69 million) in emergency funding for recovery efforts in the provinces of Hunan, Henan, Sichuan, and Shaanxi, and for typhoon disaster relief in Fujian.

Meanwhile, flood control authorities in Linjiang, a city in northeast China’s Jilin province, have raised the emergency response to level 1 – the highest alert warning – and urged residents to vacate ground level and first floors of homes. The Yalu River, which separates Linjiang and North Korea, has exceeded warning levels, authorities said.

Schools and public transport have been suspended and businesses are closed, due to the flooding. Authorities have urged the public not to hoard or rush out for supplies, and to stay indoors.

Linjiang’s police chief and an auxiliary police officer remained missing three days after they disappeared while fighting floodwaters.

The China Meteorological Administration (CMA) on Sunday urged authorities to closely follow the rainstorms and severe weather after the typhoon swept through the region.

The authorities should step up transport and tourism safety reminders and warnings during the peak summer travel season to “ensure people’s lives and property with all efforts”, the CMA said.

Authorities have also warned about the potential impact of heavy rainfall on autumn grain production in northeastern China, one of the country’s main grain-producing regions.

“We should continuously enhance the public’s awareness and capabilities for defending against meteorological disasters, as well as self-rescue and mutual rescue abilities,” the CMA said.