At least six people have died due to extreme flooding in Rongjiang county, Guizhou Province, since floods reached its peak on Tuesday. With more rain expected today, emergency efforts remain underway, with response teams working to rescue trapped people, clear silt, disinfect affected zones and pump water out of low-lying neighbourhoods, the China Daily reports.
Guizhou Province activated a Level-III emergency response for meteorological disasters triggered by rainstorms on Wednesday as fresh rains battered the region. While water levels have since dropped below the warning threshold, most low-lying areas were submerged and suffered extensive infrastructural damage.
Power had been restored to some streetlights and community facilities by Wednesday afternoon, and water services were back in some buildings’ lower floors by Thursday.
[See more: China struggles with heatwaves in the north and flooding in the south]
Several other southwestern provinces seriously impacted by flooding – including Guangxi, Yunnan and Sichuan – remain on alert for secondary disasters such as road collapses, landslides and hydro-dam overflows, Reuters reported on Thursday.
“Rural areas face significant challenges due to limited infrastructure and resources,” said Chen Xiaoguang, professor at Southwestern University of Finance and Economics in Chengdu. “Strengthening these systems in rural counties will be key to reducing the long-term impact of increasingly severe weather.”
Meanwhile, a tropical depression made landfall in Hainan Province yesterday. It’s next expected to head across the South China Sea to Guangdong Province, less than two weeks after Typhoon Wutip – which brought torrential rain and severe flooding to parts of the province from 14 June, sparking a Level-IV emergency response.
