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Published: 09:36, July 21, 2021 | Updated: 23:55, July 21, 2021
Xi stresses people's safety in flood prevention, control
By Hou Liqiang in Beijing, Li Wenfang in Guangzhou and Shi Baoyin in Zhengzhou
Published:09:36, July 21, 2021 Updated:23:55, July 21, 2021 By Hou Liqiang in Beijing, Li Wenfang in Guangzhou and Shi Baoyin in Zhengzhou

Vehicles move against a flooded roadway in heavy rain in Zhengzhou, capital of Central China's Henan province, on July 20, 2021. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING/ZHENGZHOU - Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday demanded that authorities at all levels must give top priority to ensuring people's safety and property, and carefully and strictly implement flood prevention and disaster relief measures.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an important instruction after continuous heavy rainfall hit regions including central China's Henan province, leaving 25 dead and seven people missing.

Presidentt Xi Jinping ordered authorities at all levels to promptly organize flood prevention and disaster relief forces, properly accommodate those affected, strictly prevent secondary disasters, and minimize casualties and property losses

He ordered authorities at all levels to promptly organize flood prevention and disaster relief forces, properly accommodate those affected, strictly prevent secondary disasters, and minimize casualties and property losses.

The People's Liberation Army and the People's Armed Police Force must actively assist local authorities in emergency rescue and relief work, said Xi.

He urged the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and the emergency management, water resources and transport ministries to enhance coordination, locate hidden dangers, and shore up the protection of major infrastructure.

Relevant departments should also improve the system for early warnings and forecasts of rainfall, typhoons, mountain torrents and mudslides, step up efforts on traffic management, and take detailed and practical flood prevention and disaster relief measures, said Xi.

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He also stressed the need to take solid measures to assist those affected by the floods, and to strengthen hygiene and disease control so as to ward off epidemics and prevent people from returning to poverty due to disasters.

The Ministry of Finance earmarked 100 million yuan (about US$15.42 million) of disaster relief funds for Henan province.

Besides being used for emergency rescue and disaster relief, the funds will also help affected areas restore agricultural production and water conservation infrastructure, according to the ministry.

Since July 16, over 1.24 million people have been affected by the extremely heavy rainfall and about 164,710 people have been relocated to safe places, said Xu Zhong, director of the office of Henan provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters.

A construction site is inundated with rain water in Zhengzhou, capital Central China's Henan province, on July 20, 2021. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

The natural disaster has damaged 75,000 hectares of crops, resulting in a direct economic loss of about 542.3 million yuan (US$83.8 million).

The downpours have forced water to exceed flood season marks in nine large reservoirs and 40 medium-sized ones in Henan. Several rivers were also flooded.

The rainstorms caused severe flooding in the provincial capital Zhengzhou, with subways ceasing operations, and railways, road and air transportation greatly affected.

Rescue efforts are continuing.

By 3 pm Wednesday, the Central Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) had sent more than 5,700 soldiers, armed police troops and militias to help with rescue work in more than 30 dangerous sections in Henan localities, in addition to 148 vessels and vehicles.

The Central Theater Command also enhanced supervision in the disaster-hit province via equipment such as satellites.

ALSO READ: Heavy floods forecast in major river basins

The PLA air force also sent soldiers to help with disaster relief, with many soldiers enhancing embankments overnight in Henan.

The PLA provincial military command dispatched thousands of soldiers in the battle against the disasters.

More torrential rain is forecast to hit Henan by 2 pm Thursday, according to Su Aifang, with the provincial meteorological observatory.

"As heavy rains continue, the risks of natural disasters are still high, and it is essential to prepare against flooding and geological disasters," Su said.

Also on Wednesday, authorities raised the emergency response for flood control to Level II, the second-highest level in the response system, as heavy downpours continued to lash Henan.

China has a four-tier flood-control emergency response system, with Level I being the most severe.

Extremely heavy rainfall hit Henan on Tuesday, with precipitation in Zhengzhou, the provincial capital, exceeding the highest level on local weather records, according to the Ministry of Emergency Management (MEM).

A delivery man drives on a flooded roadway in Zhengzhou, capital of Central China's Henan province, on July 20, 2021. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

The rainstorm has caused the water level in a reservoir to rise rapidly, said the ministry, adding that all local residents downstream have been relocated in advance.

From 8 am Saturday to 8 am Wednesday, the average rainfall in Zhengzhou was 458.2 mm, with accumulated precipitation in some areas even surpassing the city's total average yearly rainfall, according to the China Meteorological Administration.

The MEM has dispatched a working team to the affected areas in Henan to help local authorities with disaster relief work.

A rescue team of 1,800 firefighters has been deployed to the flood-hit region from seven neighboring provinces, together with boats, pumping vehicles and flood rescue kits.

From July 16 to 3 pm Tuesday, torrential rain affected over 280,000 residents of Henan's 31 counties and districts.Rainwater has damaged approximately 20,000 hectares of crops.

Mihe Township in Gongyi City, which is administered by Zhengzhou, has been flooded by heavy rain, with over 20,000 people affected. Further rescue work is underway.

"This kind of rainfall is usually seen once in 100 years. The situation is grim," a media release from Zhengzhou's flood control headquarters said.

The rainfall has made the flood control situation very severe, causing severe waterlogging in Zhengzhou and other cities, water levels in some rivers exceeding alarm levels, and damages to dams of some reservoirs, Xi said, adding that sections of railways have also been shut down, and some flights have been canceled.

As of 7 am Wednesday, 26 expressways in the region have reported partial closures, but there are not currently high numbers of vehicles and travelers stranded, said the transport ministry.

With a red alert for flight delays in place from 8 pm Tuesday to noon on Wednesday, all flights intending to land at the airport in Zhengzhou were canceled. 

Parts of the Zhengzhou-Xi'an high-speed railway and the Lianyungang-Lanzhou railway saw tracks and equipment flooded, as well as trackbed collapses, said the China State Railway Group.

A car is inundated by rainwater in Zhengzhou, capital of central China's Henan province, July 20, 2021. (PHOTO /XINHUA)

China's national observatory on Wednesday morning renewed an orange alert for rainstorms, the second-highest alert in its color-coded weather warning system, in many parts of the country including Henan.

From Wednesday morning to Thursday morning, heavy rains and rainstorms will continue in Henan and its neighboring provinces, the observatory said. Parts of Henan and Hebei will see rainstorms with up to 280 mm of daily precipitation.

The observatory warned that some areas are likely to see over 70 mm of hourly rainfall, accompanied by thunderstorms and gales.


With Xinhua inputs

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