Beijing lifted a severe weather alert on Tuesday but urged residents to remain vigilant, as the risk of natural disasters persisted following days of heavy rain and the evacuation of more than 82,000 people amid fears of deadly flooding.
The capital had been under a red rainstorm warning, the highest in China’s four-tier system, since Monday, with forecasters predicting torrential downpours through Tuesday morning.
In a statement on social media, the municipal weather bureau announced that the alert had been lifted early Tuesday after the storm system weakened and moved eastward. However, it warned that scattered downpours could still affect the outskirts of the city, cautioning residents not to let their guard down.
“Strong rains may have passed, but the danger of secondary disasters such as landslides remains,” the bureau said.
By Monday evening, more than 82,000 people had been evacuated from high-risk areas, according to state news agency Xinhua, citing the city’s flood control headquarters. Authorities have not yet announced when evacuees may return.
Flooding threats remain elevated in several districts, including Miyun in the northeast — the hardest hit area — along with Fangshan in the southwest, Mentougou in the west, and Huairou in the north.
In Miyun, where dozens of lives were lost last week, most of the floodwaters had receded by Tuesday, leaving behind extensive damage. AFP reporters on the ground described scenes of devastation: dented vehicles, overturned tractors, and personal belongings like strollers and luggage scattered across muddy streets.
Twisted metal railings and leaning utility poles lined roads as cleanup crews in neon vests and hard hats worked to remove debris. Nearby, murky brown floodwater surged through rivers, with uprooted trees blocking parts of the flow.
Last week’s floods in Beijing’s northern suburbs killed at least 44 people and left nine others missing, according to official figures. Survivors told AFP that they were caught off guard by the speed and force of the rising waters.
The scale of destruction prompted a rare public admission of unpreparedness from a local official.
“There were gaps in our disaster response,” said Yu Weiguo, Communist Party chief of the affected district. “Our understanding of extreme weather events was insufficient.”
Focus Shifts to Recovery
In a meeting on Monday, the Beijing municipal government called for accelerated efforts to “restore the normal order of life and production in post-disaster areas.”
China’s Ministry of Public Security also warned citizens to be cautious of misinformation, including rumors that exaggerate the scale of natural disasters and could incite panic, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
The recent flooding in Beijing comes amid a string of extreme weather events across China. Heavy rains have battered the northern regions, while parts of the southern coast — including Hong Kong — have faced repeated deluges.
On Tuesday, parts of Hong Kong were paralyzed by flash floods after the city issued its highest-level rainstorm warning for the fourth time in just over a week.
Extreme weather events are increasingly common in China, especially during the summer months when the country sees a dangerous mix of torrential rain in some areas and extreme heat in others.
China remains the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases — a major driver of climate change that intensifies such weather patterns — yet it is also a global leader in renewable energy and has pledged to reach carbon neutrality by 2060.
AFP
