CHINA (Reuters) – A vehement rainstorm collapsed 367 houses, leaving 90, 000 people homeless in central China’s Hunan Province.
Started early on Thursday morning (June 22), the torrential rain was the most violent one that has ever hit the province this year. By the end of Sunday (June 25), it battered 50 cities, counties and regions, left more than 1.62 people in predicament and causing a direct economic loss estimated at 1.99 billion yuan.
The rain belt began moving southward Saturday evening (June 24), severely lashing out at Loudi, Huaihua and a slew of many other places. In the town of Anping in Loudi, the severe weather system dumped 365 millimeters of rain in a day, collapsing 367 houses, leaving nearly 90,000 people homeless. Wood blocks, cob bricks and tilts are seen everywhere across the silty ground.
“No sooner had I ran out after seeing the dust falling that the roof caved in with a bang,” said Wu Guoyou, a local resident of Lianyuan, Loudi City.
“People whose houses collapsed have to take refuge in the homes of their relatives. In addition, we have rented some houses for the rest of them. We hope the temporary settlement will ensure they have at least shelters over their heads,” said Liang Gejun, secretary of the Party committee of Anping Town.
Loudi is bracing for another round of downpour from Monday to Tuesday, likely to cause inundating floods.
In Huaihua’s Mayang County, a number of houses are inundated , with many residents marooned.
Villager Zheng Guixiang from Lvjiaping Town described the fast growing flood as “very scary”, saying that the flood was rising so quickly that we were all scared.” Her family called the government of the township for help.
More than 20 government officials rushed to the site in minutes and evacuated 27 trapped residents. When they returned to their workplace, they found it immersed in water at least two meters deep, leaving all the materials and devices in the offices on the first floor completely soaked.
The day before, these officials mobilized more than 100 rescue workers to launch a rescue operation at a reservoir, successfully evacuating some 600 people.
Xiangtan is another city drenched by the lingering rainstorm. A two-storeyed house was inundated, stranding a senior couple and their little granddaughter on the balcony. Firefighters, aided by a local resident familiar with the terrain surrounding that house, rescued them out with life buoys, jackets and ropes.
In the afternoon, they spent two hours rescuing 20 other flood-trapped villagers and brought food and water to more than 40 others.