Beijing Has Been Hit By Its Deadliest Flooding In A Century And The Videos Look Unreal
The rainfall recorded in the Chinese capital shattered a 140-year-old record set in 1891.
Typhoon Doksuri wreaked havoc in Bejing, China, and its neighboring Hebei province, causing devastating flooding.
21 people are confirmed deaths and 26 people still missing, according to AP.
Between July 29 and August 2, the Chinese capital’s Meteorological Bureau recorded 744.8 millimeters of rainfall, shattering a 140-year-old record of 609 millimeters set in 1891.
Last year’s total rainfall in Beijing barely reached 500 millimeters.
The torrential downpour destroyed roads, submerged vehicles, caused power outages, and contaminated drinking water, with rivers rising to dangerous levels.
Zhuozhou, a small city southwest of Bejing in Hebei, suffered the worst impact, with nearly one-sixth of its population forced to seek safety elsewhere.
Meanwhile, over 1.2 million people in Hebei were relocated, according to Reuters.
Rescue teams from nearby provinces rushed to evacuate stranded residents, navigating the flooded city in rubber boats.
During one of these operations, a 41-year-old rescue worker named Wang Hong-chun died when the rubber boat she was on flipped over in the rapid currents.
Although Typhoon Doksuri has now weakened into a tropical storm, typhoon Khanun, which ravaged Japan earlier this week, it is heading toward China in the coming days, posing further risks.
The city’s waterlogged conditions could take up to a month to recede, putting China’s disaster-response system to the test.
Beijing’s vulnerability to urban water logging has been exacerbated by rapid urbanization and worsened by the climate crisis.
