China – 4 Dead After Further Flooding in Jiangxi, Hubei and Hunan

China’s Yangtze River basin has seen another wave of heavy rain and floods since 16 July, affecting the 3 provinces of Jiangxi, Hubei and Hunan. Some areas of Hubei saw around 200 mm of rain on 17 July, causing severe urban flooding, electricity, telecommunications, water supply interruption, and damage to transportation links and other infrastructure.

China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs says that, as of 18 July, four people have been killed, 118,000 evacuated, and more than 500 houses have been destroyed.

Of the four fatalities, two were the result of lightning strikes in Jiangxi. The other two victims drowned in flood water, one in Hunan, the other in Hubei.

One of the worst hit areas is Guzhang county in Hunan Province, where heavy rain has caused devastating landslides and tuned rivers into raging torrents. Hundreds have been evacuated. Around 17 houses completely destroyed and 70 others suffering major damage. No casualties have been reported in Guzhang county.

News agency Xinhua report that Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang warned of further heavy rainfall in the Yangtze River basin and said the disaster relief task remains “quite arduous.”

With the approaching of August usually with strong rainfalls and Typhoons, China is facing a more severe and complicated situation in fighting floods, Wang said.

Continuous rain and flooding in areas of the Yangtze River basin has caused the deaths of around 170 people since late June.

Tropical Cyclone Nepartak Leaves 69 Dead

Meanwhile more flood and severe weather related deaths have been reported in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Nepartak.

Nepartak made landfall near Shishi City in Fujian Province, early on 09 July, 2016. By 12 July, at least 12 people had been reported as killed and 22 were missing.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs reports that severe weather in the wake of Nepartak has further affected the provinces of Fujian, Jiangxi and Guangdong.

Fujian is by far the worst hit, and as many as 69 people have died as a result, and a further 6 are still missing. Around 16,000 houses have been destroyed and 22,000 damaged. Minqing County, one of the worst hit region in the province, has reported 60 deaths, according to Xinhua. Six cities in the province have been flooded. A total of 506,700 people have been evacuated.

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