![]() Flooded Datong Ancient Town in Tongling, July 2020 | |
Date | early June [1] [2] – September 2020 |
---|---|
Location | Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan, Hubei, Chongqing, Anhui, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Yunnan [3] [4] [5] [2] |
Deaths | 219 dead or missing (as of 13 August 2020) [6] [4] |
Property damage | US$32 billion (as of 12 October 2020) [7] [6] [8] [9] [10] |
In early June 2020, heavy rains caused by the regional rainy season led to floods severely affecting large areas of southern China including the Yangtze basin and its tributaries. Rains and floods extended to central and eastern China during July [1] [2] and were described as the worst since at least 1998. [11]
According to the Ministry of Emergency Management, by the end of June flooding had displaced 744,000 people across 26 provinces with 81 people missing or dead. [3] As of 13 August, the floods have affected 63.46 million people and caused a direct economic loss of 178.96 billion CNY, which are 12.7% and 15.5% higher than the 2015-2019 average, respectively. 219 people were found dead or are missing, and 54,000 houses collapsed, which is 54.8% and 65.3% lower than the 2015-2019 average, respectively. [6] The Ministry of Water Resources said that a total of 443 rivers nationwide have been flooded, with 33 of them swelling to the highest levels ever recorded. [12] According to statistics from the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA), 76 key national cultural relics and 187 provincial cultural heritage sites have suffered damage of varying degrees.[ citation needed ]
Affected regions include Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan, Hubei, and Chongqing. [3] [5] [13] The regions include the upper and middle river basin of the Yangtze and its tributaries. With more rain, floods started to extend to lower regions of the Yangtze basin such as Anhui, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang. [2] Hunan, Fujian, and Yunnan were also affected.
Hu Xiao from the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) indicated that the rains were caused by increased vapors arising from the Indian and Pacific oceans. [14] Many experts believe that climate change due to human activity contributed to the severity of the flooding, and such events may become more frequent in the future. [15] [16] [17]
The local governments in recent years had made steps to implement nature-based flood mitigation strategies like tree planting, sponge cities and floodplain restoration. [18] [19] Experts have noted these measures did have some positive effect as the intensity of precipitation in 2020 is much higher than the rains that caused the 1998 floods, yet the flooding has been less serious and damaging. [18] However, huge challenges in flood management and resilience remain. The Yangtze flows through some of the most productive agricultural, economic and industrial centers in China. With the rapid increase of population in China and breakneck economic growth, a large number of lakes and other wetlands had been reclaimed into farmland or urban development. [20] [21] The serious shrinkage and disappearance of lakes in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River is an important reason for the aggravation of flood disasters. [22] [23] [24] In 1915, Dongting Lake was 5,000-square-kilometre (1,900 sq mi). [21] In 2000, it was only 2,625-square-kilometre (1,014 sq mi). [21] In the 1950s, Poyang Lake was 4,350-square-kilometre (1,680 sq mi). [21] In 2000, it was only 3,750-square-kilometre (1,450 sq mi). [21] Hubei was once known as "The Province of a thousand of Lakes". [21] In the late 1950s, there were 1,066 lakes in Hubei. [21] By the early 1980s, only 309 were left. [21] [22]
Multiple dams in the Yangtze river basin control floodwaters; the biggest and most important of these is the Three Gorges Dam with its catchment area of about 1,000,000-square-kilometre (390,000 sq mi). It was constructed not only for power generation but also for flood control. [1] By the end of June, the dam had started to release floodwaters. [25] While the CMA indicated flood discharge started on 29 June, satellite images suggest that floodgates were opened already five days earlier. [26] Yichang, a city below the dam, experienced extensive flooding, raising questions about the effectiveness of the flood control by the dam. [27] According to the company that manages the dam, the dam had been "effectively reducing the speed and extent of water level rises on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze". [28] Critics, however, suggest that the dam is "not doing what it is designed for" and unable to deal with severe events. [28] Other experts have pointed out that studies do show that the dam does help alleviate typical flooding during normal years and that the problem is not the design of the dam, but the public's expectation that the dam alone can solve all the problems of flooding on the Yangtze. Particularly, when significant amounts of rainfall occurred downstream of the Three Gorges Dam in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze which will never pass through the dam. [29] [30] During July, three flood waves from rains in the upper Yangtze basin arrived at the dam, necessitating the opening of sluice gates multiple times to create space in the reservoir. [31] In Chinese social media it was claimed that this exacerbated downstream flooding, while the dam operators maintained that the action helped to delay floodwaters going downstream. [31] On 15 August, "Flood #4" passed through the Three Gorges reservoir with a maximum inflow of 62,000 cubic meters per second, the highest reached at that time during this flood season. [32] "Flood #5" passed the dam by 22 August when the reservoir's water level reached 167.85 metres, the highest level ever recorded. [33]
According to a member of the expert committee of the state-sanctioned National Disaster Reduction Centre, the restrictions in human flow during the COVID-19 pandemic in mainland China halted regular dam maintenance, dam inspection, training of officials and the construction of hydraulic projects, which were scheduled in the winter and spring of 2020. [34]
On 27 June, a 3-hour total of 118 millimetres (4.6 in) of rain was recorded in Hefei Economic and Technological Development Zone, of which 94 millimetres (3.7 in) was recorded during 1.5 h from 17:30 p.m. to 19:00 p.m. [35] Some road sections and communities were submerged. [35]
On 6 July, Lecheng Bridge, a Qing dynasty stone arch bridge and provincial cultural relics protection unit in Sanxi Town of Jingde County, was destroyed. [36] On 7 July, some houses along the Shuiyang River in Xuanzhou District of Xuancheng were submerged. [37]
On 7 July, several reservoirs in She County filled over capacity and reached record levels, requiring large releases of water to alleviate the dangerously high storage of water. [38] Homes in She County were inundated. The first day of the National College Entrance Examination (Gaokao) was postponed due to hard rain. [39] On 7 July 2020, Zhenhai Bridge, a large stone arch bridge in Tunxi District of Huangshan City and a "Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level in Anhui", was destroyed by mountain torrents. [40] [41]
On 9 July, the Yaodu and Longquan rivers in Dongzhi County exceeded their highest recorded water levels. [42]
All residents in Laozhou Township and Xuba Township of Tongling along the Yangtze River were ordered to evacuate on 11 July. [43] [44]
On 14 July, an emergency was issued by the Office of Anhui Provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief, which ordered all residents living in the central island of the Yangtze River or along the Yangtze River in Anqing, Chizhou, Tongling, Wuhu and Maanshan to evacuate. [45]
On 16 July, in Tietong Township of Zongyang County, all the remaining 2,272 people were evacuated except 176 left behind. [46]
On 18 July, the Huai River Commission of the Ministry of Water Resources raised the flood-control response from Level III to Level II. [47]
On 19 July, the Government of Quanjiao County blasted several gaps in Chu River Levee to release floods. [48]
At 8:32 am on 20 July, the Government of Nan County opened sluice gates at Wangjia Dam on the Huai River because water there was building up to too high a level. [49] The last flood discharge was 13 years ago. [49]
At 10:24 a.m. on 21 July, the water level at Zhongmiao Station of Chaohu reached 13.36-metre (43.8 ft), which is the once-in-a-century water level of Chaohu. [50]
On 22 July, five excavators were washed away by the flood in Shida Levee, Lujiang County. [51] That same day, firefighter Chen Lu was swept away by the flood while searching for trapped people in Lujiang County. [52]
On 23 July, in Chaohu, affected by the continuous heavy rainfall, the water level of the Zhegao River rose and streets of Zhegao Town were submerged. [53]
At 20:00 p.m. on 22 June, the Qijiang Wucha Hydrological Station in Jiasi Town recorded a water level of 205.85 metres (675.4 ft), which was 5.34 metres (17.5 ft) higher than the safe water level (200.51 metres (657.8 ft)). The Qijiang Wucha Hydrological Station reached 205.85 metres (675.4 ft), topping the previous record of 205.55 metres (674.4 ft) in 1998 China floods. [54] On 22 June, parts of Qijiang District's Wenlong Subdistrict were submerged, with some roads underwater. [55] 13,874 residents in Qijiang District along the Qi River were ordered to evacuate on 22 June. [55]
On 15 July, hundreds of homes in Miaoba Town of Chengkou County were evacuated due to catastrophic rain and floods. [56]
At 15:00 p.m. on 17 July, floods burst a bridge in Baojia Town of Pengshui Miao and Tujia Autonomous County, a man fell into the river and disappeared. [57]
On 27 July, affected by persistent heavy rainfall, the first floor of the shops in the town of Ciqikou alongside the Yangtze River were inundated. [58] Parts of Yuzhong District and the entire Caiyuanba Building Materials Market and Fruit Market near the swollen river were inundated. [59]
As of August 16, 2020 the center of the city of Chongqing was flooded under 1 to 2 metres (3 ft 3 in to 6 ft 7 in) of water after the Jialing River overflowed due to heavy rainfall.[ citation needed ]
On 20 August, the Cuntan Hydrological Station in Chongqing rose over the high of 191.41 metres (628.0 ft), which was set in 1981. [60] Downtown streets, houses, parks, and wharves, were inundated. [61]
China National Highway 212 was partially washed away, effectively cutting off Wen County from the outside world for three days. [62]
From 11 to 14 June, a torrential rainfall hit Youyang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County and Shizhu Tujia Autonomous County. On 14 June, Huaxia Minzu School was inundated. [63] On 22 June, homes in Youyang Tujia and Miao Autonomous County were also inundated. [64]
On 9 July, a rainstorm occurred in Nanping, causing floods, landslides and other disasters, many roads were destroyed and crops were flooded. [65] Wuyishan City had serious waterlogging, and the local government issued a rainstorm red warning signal, and Wuyishan Scenic Spot had been closed. [66]
On 22 May, the largest one hour rainfall in 2020 in China is Huangpu Bridge of Guangzhou, 168-millimetre (6.6 in). [67] Line 13 of Guangzhou Metro was shut down due to floodwater flowing into the subway tunnel. [68]
At 11:00 a.m. on 8 June, roads and farmland in Lianxin Village of Linjiang Town in Heyuan were engulfed by floods. [69] The Yonghan Levee on the Dong River collapsed, releasing an 3-metre (9.8 ft) to 5-metre (16 ft) wall of water. [70] Flood surrounded Hekou Village of Yonghan Town in Longmen County, making it an island. [70] Roads and highways were severely damaged or destroyed in Longmen County. [71]
On 7 June, the daily rainfall in Yangshuo County of Guilin was 327.7-millimetre (12.90 in), breaking the local record of daily precipitation. [72] Waterlogging occurred in several towns and townships, including Putao, Baisha and Jinbao . [73] The county seat was underwater when the torrential rainfall hit. [74] The dam of Shazixi Reservoir in Gaotian Town collapsed, 510 residents were forced to evacuate. [75] Luojin Town and Baoli Township of Yongfu County were waterlogged. [75] Maling Town and Hualong Town of Lipu alongside Maling River, Lipu River and Hualong River were besieged by flooding. [75]
On 8 June, the Pingle Hydrological Station of Gui River rose to an all-time high of 105.87-metre (347.3 ft) and crossed the danger mark 6.37-metre (20.9 ft), surpassing the previous record set in 1936. [75] National Highway G321 and G323, G65 Baotou–Maoming Expressway, and G59 Hohhot–Beihai Expressway were closed due to landslides. [75] In Luorong Town of Yufeng District, Liuzhou, homes, streets and businesses was underwater when the torrential rainfall hit. [75]
From 7:00 a.m. on 11 June to 7:00 a.m. on 12 June, a torrential rain of 264.6 millimetres (10.42 in) fell in Bifeng Town of Zheng'an County, with the maximum hourly rainfall of 163.3 millimetres (6.43 in), breaking the historical record of Guizhou in one hour. [76] It is also China's largest one hour rainfall, after Guangzhou of 168 millimetres (6.6 in) on 22 May. [76] Throughout the county, 8 people were killed and 5 were missing. [76]
At 7:00 a.m. on 14 June, a total of 438,000 people in 51 counties of 8 cities in Guizhou were affected, 10 people died, 14 people were missing, 21,000 people were forced to evacuate; nearly 100 houses collapsed and more than 8,000 houses were badly damaged; 175,000 hectares (1,750 km2) of crops were affected, including 28,000 hectares (280 km2) will have no harvest; and the direct economic loss was 880 million yuan. [76]
In 26 June, the torrential rainfall hit Rongjiang County, resulting in a direct economic loss of 4.8 million yuan due to rural roads in the county sustained major damage. [77]
At 7:05 a.m. on 8 July, at least six people were killed when a landslide occurred in Shiban village of Songtao Miao Autonomous County. [78]
On 12 July, portions of National Highway G212 in Meijiuhe Town of Renhuai was closed due to mountain flood. [79] Loushanguan Scenic Spot was also closed. [79]
As of 13 July in Hubei province, at least 14 people were dead, and five others were missing. Over nine million people were affected.[ citation needed ]
At 7:00 p.m. on 5 July, the water level of Baiyanghe Reservoir rose to 84.62-metre (277.6 ft). [80] At 12:00 p.m. on 6 July, the dam slipped and deformed, and 29,000 people were evacuated. [80]
At 4 a.m. on 8 July, a landslide caused by heavy rainfall in Yuanshan village of Dahe Town in Huangmei County, killing eight people. [81]
At 13:00 p.m. on 11 July, the water level of Chang Lake at Jingzhou reached 33.49-metre (109.9 ft), topping the previous record of 33.46-metre (109.8 ft) in 2016. [82]
On 17 July, in Enshi City, the streets and cars were covered in water. [83] All roads in and out of the city were closed. [83]
At 8:00 a.m. on 20 August, the Three Gorges Dam saw an inflow of 75,000-cubic-metre (2,600,000 cu ft) per second, the largest flood peak since the construction of the dam. [84]
On 29 June, a rainstomm hit in Fenghang County, Xiangxe Tujea and Miao Autonomous Prefecture. [85] The landscape and roads on both sides of Tuo River were inundated.
On 3 July, the Government of Hunaun launched a Level IV emergency response, the lowest in China's four-tier emergency response system, for flood control. [86]
On 8 July, Madian Reservoir of Yueyang County received 303-millimetre (11.9 in) of rainfall in total, representing the highest accumulated rainfall since 1952. [87]
On 8 July, in southwestern Hunan's Zhangjiajie, a man netting fish was swept away by the flood. [88]
Hunan Hydrological and Water Resources Survey Center issued an orange flood warning at 12:20 p.m. on 11 July. [89] At 2:00 p.m. on 11 July, Orange Isle was closed. [90]
On 20 July, the Government of Hunan announced that as of 20 July, persistent heavy rainfall has affected more than 6.01 million people in 117 counties of 14 prefectures in Hunan, and more than 347,000 people have been transferred and resettled urgently. [91]
Jiangxi experienced major floods in July 2020, primarily along the Poyang Lake and its tributaries in Jiujiang, Shangrao, and Pingxiang.
At 0:00 a.m. on 12 July, the water level at Xingzi station of Poyang Lake reached 22.53 metres (73.9 ft), exceeding the record of 22.52 metres (73.9 ft) in 1998 China floods. [92]
Residents were forced to evacuate Jiangzhou Town and Sanjiao Township of Jiujiang on 12 July as the flooded river began to overtake homes. [93] [94] Jiangzhou is an island in the middle of Yangtze River at the end of the Poyang lake, local government issued a call on social media for everyone from the town aged 18 to 60 to return and help fight the flood, citing a severe lack of hands to reinforce dams. [95]
On 11 July, the Government of Jiangxi raised its flood-control response from level II to level I, the top level of China's four-tier emergency response for floods. [96] Rao River rose to an all-time high of 22.65-metre (74.3 ft), crossing the danger mark and surpassing the previous record of 22.43-metre (73.6 ft) set in 1998. [97] [98] Parks, homes, and businesses in Poyang County were overtaken by the Rao River, leaving parts of the county accessible only by boat. [99] The 73123 Army of the Eastern Theater Command Ground Force rushed to Poyang County to fight flood. [100] In Dongzhi County, floods had affected more than 260,000 people, or about half of the county's population. [96]
On the afternoon of 8 July, Qinghua Rainbow Bridge was devastated by flood. [101] In the early morning of 9 July, the highest water level of Sandu Hydrological Station in Wuyuan County reached 62.74-metre (205.8 ft), exceeding the warning water level by 4.74-metre (15.6 ft). [101]
On 17 June, heavy rain triggered mudslides and flooding that leaves 2 people missing in Danba County. [102]
From 18 pm 26 June to 1 am on 27 June, a sudden rainstorm occurred in northern Mianning County. [103] National Highway 248 collapsed in the county seat Gaoyang Subdistrict , causing two passing vehicles to fall into river. Only five of the ten passengers were rescued, two died and three were missing. [104] As of 23:00 on 30 June 14 people were killed and 8 people were missing in Gaoyang Subdistrict and Yihai Town . As of 1 July, 500 hectares (5.0 km2) of crops were affected, 280 hectares (2.8 km2) were damaged and 70 hectares (0.70 km2) will have no harvest, more than 280 houses collapsed or badly damaged and 2,300 houses partially damaged. [103] [104]
On 6 July 4 people were missing from the debris flow caused by floods in Zhailong Town of Xiaojin County. [105]
On 16 July, in Tongchuan District of Dazhou, 7 people went swimming in the river and 2 people were washed away by floods. [106]
In early August, continuous rainfall has caused 22 major rivers in Sichuan to exceed their flood warning levels. Ya'an and Leshan were underwater when the torrential rainfall hit. 100,000 people were evacuated. [107]
On 17 August, in Leshan, floods affected the Leshan Giant Buddha, flood water reached the toes of the Buddha statue for the first time since the establishment of the Communist State in 1949. Local police and scenic area staff placed sandbags at the platform under the statue's feet, building a dam-like structure to protect it. [108] [109] [110]
On 18 August, the Government of Sichuan launched its Level I emergency response, which is the first time in the history of Sichuan. In Jiuzhaigou County, the Jiuzhaigou Valley Scenic and Historic Interest Area announced temporary closure due to safety concerns. [111] [112] The Yan'an section of Qingyi River was hit by a major flood rarely seen in a hundred years. [111] [113] The lower reaches of Dadu River and Min River were exceeded warning levels. In Pingshan County of Yibin, the government evacuated 2,400 of its residents due to flooding. [114]
On 21 August, days of heavy rainfall triggered a landslide, causing seven people deaths and two missing. [115]
From the evening of 29 to 30 June, a heavy rainstorm occurred in Zhenxiong County, Yiliang County, Weixin County and Yanjin County. The level of Baishui River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, had risen 8 metres (26 ft), causing serious floods in towns and townships along the river. [116] As of 21:00 on 30 June, 3,871.54 hectares (38.7154 km2) of crops such as corn, potatoes and tobacco were affected, 3,745.09 hectares (37.4509 km2) were damaged and 84.68 hectares (0.8468 km2) will have no harvest, and more than 90 houses collapsed, 59 houses badly damaged and 90 houses partially damaged. [117]
On 29 May, Chunan County suffered the strongest plum rain in history. On 8 July, the level of Qiandao Lake reached its highest level in history. [118] At 9:00 a.m. on 8 July, Xin'an River Hydropower Station began to discharge flood. [119] This is the first time since the completion of the hydropower station that all 9 gates have been fully opened for flood discharge. [119]
The Chinese government allocated about 309 million yuan (44.2 million U.S. dollars) for disaster relief in flood-hit regions.[ citation needed ] On 8 and 12 July, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) general secretary and paramount leader Xi Jinping as well as Premier Li Keqiang called successively for all-out efforts in rescue and relief operations in flooded areas across China and stressed that ensuring people's lives and safety is a top priority. [120] [121]
On the evening of 12 July, more than 7,000 officers and soldiers of the 71st Group Army and the 72nd Group Army went to Jiujiang and Tongling to participate in flood fighting and emergency rescue tasks. [122] [123] [124] On the morning of 14 July, more than 3,700 officers and soldiers from the 73rd Group Army rushed to Yugan County to fight against floods and deal with emergencies. [122] [123] [124] On 14 July, according to the order of the Central Military Commission, more than 16,000 officers and soldiers were sent to Jiujiang, Shangrao and other areas of Jiangxi to fight floods. [122] [123] [124] At 23:00 on 19 July, the officials of the Central Theater Command arrived in Wuhan, Hubei to command flood fighting and disaster relief. [125] On 22 July, the Chinese government channeled 830 million yuan (119.05 million U.S. dollars) from its central budget to restore water conservancy and agricultural production facilities in 12 provincial flood-hit regions.[ citation needed ] On 19 August, CCP general secretary Xi Jinping visited Wangjiaba Dam on the Huai River and other flood-hit areas in Fuyang. [126] That same day, Premier Li Keqiang arrived in Chongqing to assess conditions, visiting the village of Shuangba and the historic town of Ciqikou. [126] [127]
Yangtze or Yangzi is the longest river in Eurasia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows 6,300 km (3,915 mi) in a generally easterly direction to the East China Sea. It is the fifth-largest primary river by discharge volume in the world. Its drainage basin comprises one-fifth of the land area of China, and is home to nearly one-third of the country's population.
The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River near Sandouping in Yiling District, Yichang, Hubei province, central China, downstream of the Three Gorges. The world's largest power station in terms of installed capacity (22,500 MW), the Three Gorges Dam generates 95±20 TWh of electricity per year on average, depending on the amount of precipitation in the river basin. After the extensive monsoon rainfalls of 2020, the dam's annual production reached nearly 112 TWh, breaking the previous world record of ~103 TWh set by Itaipu Dam in 2016.
Chongqing is a municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the Central People's Government, along with Beijing, Shanghai, and Tianjin. It is the only directly administrated municipality located deep inland. The municipality covers a large geographical area roughly the size of Austria, which includes several disjunct urban areas in addition to Chongqing proper. Due to its classification, the municipality of Chongqing is the largest city proper in the world by area, though it does not have the largest urban area.
Fuling District is a district in central Chongqing, China. As the second largest city in Chongqing, the area is known for zha cai, a hot pickled mustard tuber, as well as serving as the location of former U.S. Peace Corps teacher Peter Hessler's best-selling memoir River Town: Two Years on the Yangtze.
The Banqiao Reservoir Dam is a dam on the River Ru (汝河), a tributary of the Hong River in Zhumadian City, Henan province, China. The Banqiao dam and Shimantan Reservoir Dam are among 62 dams in Zhumadian that failed catastrophically in 1975 during Typhoon Nina. The dam was subsequently rebuilt.
The 1931 China floods, or the 1931 Yangtze–Huai River floods, occurred from June to August 1931 in China, hitting major cities such as Wuhan, Nanjing and beyond, and eventually culminated in a dike breach along Lake Gaoyou on 25 August 1931.
Wuhu is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Anhui province, China. Sitting on the southeast bank of the Yangtze River, Wuhu borders Xuancheng to the southeast, Chizhou and Tongling to the southwest, Hefei City to the northwest, Ma'anshan city to the northeast, Jiangsu to the east, and is approximately 90 km (56 mi) southwest of Nanjing. With the urbanization trend in the southern part of Nanjing, a conurbation between Nanjing, Maanshan and Wuhu is in building with more than 10,660,000 inhabitants.
The 1998 China floods (1998年中国洪水) lasted from middle of June to the beginning of September 1998 in China at the Yangtze River as well as the Nen River, Songhua River and the Pearl River.
The 2010 China floods began in early May 2010. Three hundred and ninety-two people died, and a further 232 people were reported missing as of June 30, 2010, including 57 people in a landslide in Guizhou. Fifty-three of the deaths occurred from the flooding and landslides between May 31 and June 3, and 266 deaths occurred between June 13 and June 29. Four hundred and twenty four people were killed by the end of June, including 42 from the Guizhou landslide; 277 more were killed and 147 were missing in the first two weeks of July, bringing the death toll as of August 5 to 1,072. A landslide in early August in Gansu killed at least 1,471 people and left 294 missing. In total, the flooding and landslides killed at least 3,185 people in China by August 31. More than 230 million people in 28 provinces, municipalities, and regions, especially the southern and central provinces and regions of Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Chongqing Municipality, Gansu, Sichuan, and Guizhou, and the northeastern province of Jilin were affected, while at least 4.66 million people were evacuated because of the risk of flooding and landslides in the latter half of June. By early August, over 12 million people were evacuated, and that number rose to 15.2 million by August 31.
The 2011 China floods were a series of floods from June to September 2011 that occurred in central and southern parts of the People's Republic of China. They were caused by heavy rain that inundated portions of 12 provinces, leaving other provinces still suffering a prolonged drought, and with direct economic losses of nearly US$6.5 billion.
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The 2017 China floods began in early June 2017. More than 14.9017 million people in 10 provinces and municipalities and regions were affected, especially the southern and central provinces and regions of Guangxi, Guangdong, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhejiang, Shandong, Shaanxi, Yunnan, Sichuan, Gansu and Henan. Hunan was the hardest hit. A total of 18,100 houses were destroyed, and more than 9,821-square-metre (105,710 sq ft) of crops were inundated.
In August 1975, the Banqiao Dam and 61 others throughout Henan collapsed following the landfall of Typhoon Nina. The dam collapse created the third-deadliest flood in history which affected 12,000 km2 with a total population of 10.15 million, including around 30 cities and counties, with estimates of the death toll ranging from 26,000 to 240,000. The flood also caused the collapse of 5 million to 6.8 million houses. The dam failure took place in the context of the Cultural Revolution.
Zhenhai Bridge was a large stone arch bridge in Tunxi District of Huangshan City, Anhui, China. The bridge went across the Heng River, and had a total history of more than 400 years. The bridge was 133 m (436 ft) long and had 15 m (49 ft) wide.
Qi River is a river in southwest China's Guizhou and Chongqing. It is 217 square kilometres (84 sq mi) long and is a tributary of Yangtze River, draining an area of 6,902 square kilometres (2,665 sq mi). It rises in northwestern Guizhou's Tongzi County, and flows generally north, passing through the center of Chongqing and joining the Yangtze River in Zhiping Town of Jiangjin District.
Laozhou Township is a township in Yi'an District of Tongling, Anhui, China. As of the 2017 census it had a population of 8,146 and an area of 42-square-kilometre (16 sq mi). The township is bordered to the east by Wusong Town and to the west by Wuwei County and Zongyang County.
Zheng Shouren was a Chinese engineer and chief designer of the Three Gorges Dam. He had been engaged in the planning and design of the Yangtze River Basin and major water conservancy projects for a long time and had published more than 60 papers and 4 books. He was a member of the Communist Party of China.
China's Henan Province experienced flooding between 17 and 31 July 2021 as a result of heavy rainfall. On July 20, Zhengzhou, the provincial capital, recorded 201.9 millimetres (7.95 in) of rainfall within an hour, the highest ever figure recorded since measurements began in 1951. On 2 August 2021, provincial authorities reported 302 deaths, and over 50 missing people. Later, government investigations led to conclude that provincial officials had “deliberately impeded and withheld reports of up to 139 cases”, and that the full death toll was 398. The floods caused the evacuation of 815,000 people, and affected 14.5 million people around the province. The intensity of the floods was believed to have been amplified by extreme weather caused by climate change.
Several floods struck China starting in June 2021, most of them caused by heavy rainfalls in different areas. According to the World Meteorological Organization, such heavy rains are frequently a result of climate change. The most notable floods were the 2021 Henan floods, which left 398 dead or missing.
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