Severe flooding in China’s northern Hebei province and northeastern Liaoning province submerged roads and swept away cars, while people swam, paddle-boarded and wake surfed along neighbourhood streets, videos on social media showed.
Water levels rose to more than two metres on roads in Kuancheng, a county in Hebei, according to a resident’s account that was broadcast by local official media.
Kuancheng is home to around 240,000 people and is located on the banks of the Luan River.
Several cars were filmed crashing into each other in Kuancheng as they bobbed up and down a waterlogged road before being carried away by the strength of the current.
The floods came after Typhoon Bavi, the most powerful storm to strike mainland China this year, brought heavy rain to the eastern coast and violent winds to the area’s densely populated cities, testing the country’s ability to cope with extreme weather.
Authorities warned the storm would dump torrential rain across the provinces of Jilin, Liaoning, Hubei, Shandong, Jiangsu and Anhui, exacerbating flood risks in areas that had already been soaked by earlier downpours.
Around 1,800 villagers in Kuancheng were stranded, state broadcaster CCTV reported, while authorities said that relocating and resettling residents was their top priority. In Liaoning, authorities raised the red alert for flash floods, warning of very high risks.
Many train services in Shenyang were also suspended, China Railway said on Monday, with more than 30 railway sections affected.
Schools have also been closed across many areas including the northeastern province of Jilin.
Some areas in northeastern China will experience thunderstorms or hailstorms of Force 8 or above, CCTV reported, citing the country’s Central Meteorological Observatory.
Forty-six rivers nationwide are experiencing flooding above warning levels, CCTV reported, citing China’s Ministry of Water Resources. – Reuters
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