In Beijing, “the last series of violent thunderstorms left 30 dead (…) until midnight on Monday,” wrote China Nouvelle, quoting the municipal center for flooding.
“A total of 80,332 people were moved” because of the bad weather, said on the WeChat platform the local journal Beijing Daily, an official media.
The Miyun district, northeast of Beijing, has recorded the most damage. “The rain was exceptionally intense this time, it’s not like that normally,” a resident of the district called Jiang told AFP.
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“The road is filled with water, so people cannot go to work,” she explains, showing the road in front of her house overwhelmed by a torrent of water.
AFP journalists on site have seen a site machine put people and a dog in safety, and rescuers wading in the water to the knees.
Nearby, in the city of Mujiayu, AFP journalists have seen a reservoir freeing a torrent of water, and ambulances and military vehicles crisscross the streets flooded. Electric lines were swept away by muddy torrents.
Firefighters also rescued 48 people trapped in a care center for the elderly, the CCTV public channel reported.
Huairou, northern, and Fangshan, southwest districts were also particularly affected, according to state media.
“Graves catastrophes”
The daily Beijing Daily has also reported dozens of closed roads and more than 130 villages private electricity.
“Please pay attention to forecasts and weather alerts and do not go to risk areas except if necessary,” said the publication.
Chinese President Xi Jinping urged the authorities on Monday evening to accelerate the shelter of residents of the areas that may be flooded.
The government has released 350 million yuan (42 million euros) for emergency operations in nine regions affected by intense precipitation, CCTV announced on Tuesday. A separate envelope of 200 million yuan (24 million euros) was reserved only for Beijing, according to public television.
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In the Hebei province, which surrounds the capital, a landslide in a village had killed four people and made eight missing on Monday, according to CCTV. Local authorities issued a sudden flood alert, in force until Tuesday evening. CHENGDE – The regional capital – and its surroundings are targeted by the highest level of alert.
Natural disasters are common in China, especially during the summer, when certain regions are overwhelmed by torrential rains while others are in the grip of intense heat waves.
China is the largest global greenhouse gas transmitter which, according to scientists, accelerate climate change and make extreme meteorological events more frequent and intense.
The Asian giant is also a major player in the renewable energies sector, and aims to reach carbon neutrality by 2060.
Earlier in July, floods suffered in the Shandong province (northeast) left two dead and ten missing. In addition, in the province of Sichuan (southwest), a landslide on a highway caused five people.
In 2023, violent precipitation had resulted in more than 80 people in northern and northeast of China, including at least 29 in the Hebei province where serious floods had destroyed houses and cultures.
