Southern China Devastated by Floods, Several People Missing as Homes Swept Away

An aerial view of a car driving past a landslide site after storms in Longyan, in eastern China's Fujian province, on June 17, 2024. (CNS/AFP)

Severe flooding has caused widespread devastation across southern China, affecting more than six provinces and regions. On June 20, torrential rains struck Huangshan, a tourist city in Anhui, triggering floods that swept away homes and vehicles, with many individuals reported missing. Weather forecasts indicate persistent heavy rainfall in the area. Some residents say that despite the scale of the disaster, it has failed to gain significant traction on Weibo, China’s state-controlled social media platform.

Heavy rainfall in Huangshan has resulted in severe urban flooding, as reported by The Paper, a Chinese state-run media outlet. Villagers have recounted numerous houses being washed away, along with reports of several missing individuals. The situation has left the entire town without power and internet connectivity.

Huangshan encountered an extraordinary average rainfall exceeding 250 millimeters (almost 10 inches), with Jiexi County recording a peak precipitation of 523.9 millimeters (about 21 inches). The Paper, citing the Chinese communist regime’s Weather China, reported that several counties experienced 24-hour rainfall that broke local records, marking the highest single-day precipitation in their recorded history.

Authorities maintained a red torrential rain alert, the highest level, on the evening of June 20, as the local area endured relentless rainfall surpassing 160 millimeters, just over 6 inches, in six hours. The deluge resulted in collapsed houses and vehicles being swept away by floods throughout the region.

Residents confirmed the situation to the Chinese-language edition of The Epoch Times on June 20.

“The streets are submerged, cars washed away, and many of my coworkers couldn’t make it to work. I live nearby, so I had to come in,” a hotel worker, from Tunxi Old Street in Huangshan, said.

“It’s been raining heavily these past few days, combined with flood discharge, causing water levels to rise significantly. Many shops are flooded, schools have suspended classes, and children are staying home. Travel is very difficult, and transportation has come to a halt. The rain is expected to continue until early next month,” she explained.

A resident of Qimen County described the scene. “When I woke up this morning, the entire alley was flooded, with the water level rising to nearly 2 meters [about 6 feet]. I’ve heard that the Tunxi area is also completely flooded.”

A resident from Shexian County said, “Our courtyard is already flooded, but thankfully, the rooms are still okay. The low-lying areas are severely affected, and all nearby roads have been washed out. Access is impossible for incoming traffic, and we can’t leave either. There’s uncertainty about when the water will recede. The river levels began rising today, and tomorrow remains uncertain. The road we used to enter is flooded, blocking car passage.”

Some residents told Chinese media and social media platforms that this is the first time they’ve seen floods of this magnitude in over 30 years.

According to a report by China’s state-run media outlet Anhui News, a total of 1,501 weather stations documented rainfall exceeding 50 millimeters (almost 2 inches), with 896 stations reporting over 100 millimeters (almost 4 inches) of precipitation from the evening of June 18 until the afternoon of June 20.

The most heavily affected areas were situated south of the Huai River in Anhui Province. Yiqi, a town in Huangshan, recorded the highest precipitation at 450.9 millimeters (almost 18 inches) during this period.

Due to persistent heavy rainfall, the Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters in Huangshan City elevated their flood prevention emergency response level from Level III to Level II on June 20.

The discharge of water from reservoirs has been implicated in causing numerous flash floods in China. State-run broadcaster CCTV reported that on June 20th at noon, the local Fengle Reservoir increased its discharge rate to 400 cubic meters (approximately 100,000 gallons) per second.

The measure aimed to reduce the water level by 0.1 meters (almost 4 inches) per hour, following a rapid surge from 195 meters (640 feet) to 202 meters (663 feet) on June 19th, marking a 7-meter (over 23 feet) rise within 24 hours and exceeding the flood limit level. Adjustments to the discharge rate will be made promptly based on rainfall conditions and reservoir levels, according to CCTV.

The forecast from the Chinese Central Meteorological Observatory predicts the heaviest rainfall for the affected southern regions of China from the night of June 21 until June 23. This includes 10 provinces and regions: southern Henan, Hubei, Jiangsu, Anhui, eastern parts of Guizhou and Yunnan, northern parts of Hunan and Jiangxi, Shanghai, and central parts of northern Zhejiang.

Media Attention Sparse

Despite widespread flood devastation, the disaster did not trend on Weibo’s official “Hot Search List” until around 8 p.m. Beijing time on June 20. The top trends were focused on Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s recent speeches and inspection tours.

Several residents expressed frustration on Weibo over the lack of media coverage, with one saying, “The heavy rain in Huangshan has destroyed the bridge in my hometown. Why is there no news coverage?”

Another remarked, “This flood is even worse than the one in 2020, and they’re releasing water from the reservoirs.” In 2020, the Chinese national college entrance exam in Shexian County, Huangshan, was postponed due to torrential rains that caused severe flooding in the county.

A third commenter said, “Exactly, there’s been no attention at all, my home is flooded too.”

Haizhong Ning and Li Muen contributed to this report.