A man in central China has been rescued after spending three days trapped in a flooded underground garage after heavy rain while at least four bodies were found after draining a traffic tunnel, according to news reports.
State TV, citing Li Changchun, deputy director of the emergency department of Henan Province, reported that the death toll had risen to 58 after record rains fell in the main city of Zhengzhou on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, rescuers have used bulldozers and rubber boats to evacuate residents from areas still under water, according to Shanghai news outlet The Paper.
Rain inundated a subway tunnel in Zhengzhou, killing at least 12 people, knocking out power to a hospital and other buildings, and leaving streets strewn with mud. Dozens of trains in the area were delayed by up to 40 hours.
Li Yongsheng was found yesterday afternoon in a garage under Jincheng International Plaza in Zhengzhou’s Jinshui District, according to the newspaper. It said he was trapped when the garage was flooded on Tuesday and lay on a vent duct surrounded by floating cars.
A photo on The Paper’s website showed Lee being guided by rescue workers in deep water. She added that he was taken to hospital with severe injuries.
Today, the skies are mostly clear but parts of Zhengzhou and other cities including Hebei, Xinxiang and Anyang are still under water.
Rescuers in Hebei were relocating people from areas up to six feet deep, the newspaper said. It said authorities intentionally flooded parts of Hebei on Saturday afternoon to lower the water level elsewhere.
A video on The Paper website showed lifeguards in boats making their way through the streets through deep water.
In Zhengzhou, a city of 12 million people, a body and more than 200 wrecked cars were found in the Jingguang North Road Tunnel, where water was pumped up to 43 feet deep, the newspaper said.
China’s Xinhua News Agency said the Ministry of Emergency Management has dispatched 300-strong flood-discharge teams and equipment from neighboring provinces.
Local residents transport their belongings in the flood-hit Zhengzhou city
Source: Xinhua News Agency / Palestinian Authority Photos
Source: Xinhua News Agency / Palestinian Authority Photos
Typhoon in Fa
China closed ports and railways today as it braces for Typhoon N Fa – expected to make landfall late Sunday in the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang near Shanghai, according to Xinhua.
Chinese authorities have issued a level three alert – the third highest – for the storm, while more than 100 trains traveling through the area have been canceled, according to China Railways.
Shanghai authorities closed some public parks and museums and today warned residents to «stop large outdoor gatherings» and stay indoors.
Meanwhile, all container ship docks from Yangshan Port, south of Shanghai, were closed and 150 ships including passenger ships and cargo ships were evacuated from the area.
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Millions have been affected by the floods, with some trapped without food or fresh water for days, while others have been taken to safety in excavator buckets.
More than 495,000 people have been evacuated, according to the Henan government, as the floods have caused billions of dollars in losses.
Forklift trucks, off-roaders, and canoe are used to transport the trapped residents during the historic floods in Al-Baysha.
Source: SIPA USA / PA Images
Henan’s emergency response official, Li Changchun, warned today that the province will need to carry out large-scale cleaning and disinfection «to ensure that there is no epidemic after the disaster.»
Torrential rain brought a general downpour on just three days this week in the hardest-hit city of Zhengzhou, with at least 12 people killed on a subway during rush hour Tuesday after passengers in their carriages were trapped by floodwaters.
State media warned that En Fa Island may bring more heavy rains to parts of the province in the coming days.
China has suffered an annual flood season for thousands of years, but record rainfall in Henan has raised questions about how Chinese cities can better prepare for exotic weather events, which experts say are occurring with increasing frequency and intensity due to climate change.
Henan Province is bereft of rivers, dams, and reservoirs, many of which were established decades ago to manage the flow of flood waters and irrigate the agricultural area, but rapid urbanization has strained existing drainage systems.
– With reports from AFP