Recent floods in Guangdong province, China, have wreaked havoc, causing extensive damage and displacing thousands of residents. The torrential rains led to widespread flooding, submerging homes, roads, and agricultural land, impacting the lives of millions as emergency responders worked tirelessly to rescue those stranded by rising waters.
Guangdong, known as China’s economic hub with its 127 million inhabitants, bore the brunt of the unprecedented bad weather for April. Over 82,500 individuals had to be evacuated, with at least eleven people reported missing, including six from the town of Jiangwan near Shaoguan in the province’s mountainous region. The heavy rains triggered landslides, injuring six individuals as per the official Xinhua news agency.
Since April 16, relentless downpours have pounded the Pearl River Delta, an industrial and densely populated area of China. Four weather stations in Guangdong recorded record-breaking rainfall for the month of April. This region, susceptible to annual flooding from April to September, has seen increasingly severe floods in recent years due to more intense rains, a worrying trend attributed to the climate crisis.
Last year alone, China experienced more intense and extreme rainfall events during the rainy season, setting new records with 72 national weather stations reporting record daily rainfall and 346 stations breaking monthly records, according to the China Meteorological Administration.
In the current scenario, at least 44 rivers in the Pearl River basin have surpassed the alert level, posing a threat of overflowing. The Bei River, a Pearl River tributary, faced a “100-year” flood warning, with water levels expected to rise 5.8 meters above the warning mark. Aerial images depicted villages submerged in murky waters, with only rooftops and treetops peeking out in some areas.
In response to the escalating situation, authorities elevated the flood emergency status for the Pearl River Delta to Level 2, the second-highest on a four-level scale. Cities suspended classes, and numerous flights were canceled in Guangzhou and Shenzhen. The destructive floods resulted in over 80 houses collapsing or sustaining severe damage, amounting to an economic loss of nearly 140 million yuan ($20 million).
The catastrophic floods underscore the critical need for more robust measures to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change. As affected communities strive to recover from this natural disaster, authorities must enhance preparedness and response strategies for extreme weather events to safeguard populations and minimize future devastation.