Extreme Measures for Extreme Weather

Damage Control

A sharp turn in weather, from drought to instant flooding, tends to take a heavy death toll since people are unprepared, said the SFDH Office. Heavy downpours have the potential to flood low-lying farms and villages or cause landslides in mountainous regions. Dams also come under pressure if they are not able to discharge the excess water fast enough.

The sharp turn of disasters happened along the Huaihe River to the north of Yangtze River in 2005 and along the Pearl River to the south of Yangtze River in 2010 all caused deaths and heavy property losses. The major reasons for the sharp turn this time were waterlogging in irrigation canals, lakes and ponds and a sudden change of weather.

The SFDH Office called for timely and accurate warnings and effective prevention efforts against such natural disasters. For instance, reservoirs should be drained for sudden increases in water levels; and disaster-relief personnel and materials should always be readily available to ensure a quick response when an emergency occurs.

The office also requires efforts to maintain the water diversion quantity from rivers to irrigation canals and ditches at a reasonable level to ensure these facilities work properly. Disaster-relief schemes should be put in place in advance to answer any emergency call. Local governments should work out feasible emergency schemes to address any rainstorm or mountainous torrents in accordance with local conditions and conduct rehearsals of such schemes for the sake of avoiding deaths and losses in such emergency cases.

Flood Statistics

By June 11, the sudden rainstorms in south China had triggered flooding in 13 provinces, damaging 310,000 hectares of farmland, affecting 8.48 million people (including 94 deaths and 78 missed), destroying 27,100 houses, and causing direct economic losses of 7.45 billion yuan (US$1.15 billion).