DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Thursday, July 22, 2021 | 3 TOP NEWS

Extreme weather Experts explain cause, duration of rainstorms By Li Hongyang downdrafts — moved from the [email protected] Funiu mountains to , causing strong, continuous rainfall How heavy were the recent in certain areas, Su said. rainstorms in ? From Saturday morning until How long will the rain last? Wednesday morning, extreme rain- From Thursday to Monday, rain fall rarely seen in history lashed was forecast to continue in Henan. most parts of Henan province. However, rainfall will gradually The cumulative rainfall in the subside in Zhengzhou and the province during the four days was province’s northern and central record high, the provincial mete- regions, though the storms will orological service said. increase the risk of mountain tor- The rain was heaviest in the pro- rents and other geological disas- vincial capital, Zhengzhou, for a ters. By Monday, lighter rain is short period on Monday and Tues- forecast for parts of Henan, the day. Northern, western and central provincial weather service said. parts of Henan also experienced However, local authorities are downpours, the service said. still urged to be vigilant and prepare Zhengzhou’s biggest one-hour to prevent or cope with flooding precipitation — 201.9 mm between and other possible disasters. 4 and 5 pm on Tuesday — was also the highest on the Chinese main- What is behind such An area near an overpass for high-speed railways is flooded in Zhengzhou, Henan province, on Wednesday. WU XIAOHUI / CHINA DAILY land. The previous record was 198.5 extreme weather? mm in Linzhuang village, Zhuma­- “We haven’t fully understood the dian in August 1975, the National rule of extreme weather events and Meteorological Center said. still need to research it,” said Chen, The city’s precipitation during chief forecaster at the National the four days exceeded that of its Meteorological Center. “Many Spirits rise as floods subside average annual precipitation, the abnormal factors jointly cause center said. such events, including typhoons Since the founding of the People’s and summer rain. Troops, volunteers, more than 30 hazardous areas in Republic of China in 1949, five pre- “It is incorrect to say that a cer- Zhengzhou, Luo­yang, and vious extreme rainfall weather tain place like Henan is vulnerable firms go all-out other cities in Henan­ to help local events have hit Henan — in 1963, to extreme weather events, or that to assist Henan governments clear debris and mop 1975, 1982, 1996 and 2016. Among the events occur at some regular up remaining floodwaters as well as those, the one in August 1975, influ- frequency,” he added. prevent landslides. enced by a typhoon, was the fiercest, Chen also said that talk among By SHI BAOYIN in Zhengzhou, The command activated an emer- the provincial weather service said. netizens that the rain in Henan Zhao Lei in Beijing gency response plan and has estab- reached the highest level in a millen- and HE WEI in Shanghai lished a disaster-relief headquarters. Why did strong rainstorms nium is also improper. The first unit mobilized was the hit Henan this time? “China started recording People in the flood-ravaged prov- engineering and anti-chemical bri- Chen Tao, chief forecaster at the meteorological data in 1951, ince of Henan have suffered great gade of the PLA Ground Force’s National Meteorological Center, meaning that we only have 70 inconvenience, economic losses and 83rd Group Army. The brigade sent said abundant water vapor years’ rain data. Also, we don’t rate even tragedy in recent days, but they troops early on Tuesday morning to brought by Typhoon In-Fa and the the rain level in this way,” he said. have been able to display courage Troops from the People’s Armed Police Force’s Henan Provincial a damaged dyke in Yichuan county province’s special topography led and help others in a time of peril. Command build flood barriers in Zhengzhou on Wednesday. to demolish a section of the barrier to Henan’s rain. Why is it difficult to forecast Video clips shot on smartphones PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY with explosives to divert floodwater. “Partly affected by the typhoon, extreme weather events? in multiple cities in Henan show The largest group in the mobilized large amounts of water vapor have Predicting such weather events people rushing into flooded streets and provide necessities for flood Tech giants Tencent, Didi Chuxing force — over 2,000 militiamen from been transported to China’s inland remains a challenge worldwide to rescue others — often strangers victims in need. and ByteDance and food delivery plat- the PLA Henan Provincial Command areas, including Henan,” he said. because it involves many meteoro- trapped or drowning in floodwater Other individuals have taken it form Meituan have each promised — was sent to more than 10 places to Su Aifang, chief forecaster at logical phenomena, the center said. — placing their own lives at risk. upon themselves to help out. Liu Qing- donations of 100 million yuan. Fox- help to clear river courses, examine the provincial weather service, “The formation of this kind of In one video, people form a bo from Dongying, Shandong prov- conn Industrial Internet, which has and monitor river banks and dykes, said the province’s Taihang and extreme weather, including rain- human chain and use a rope to pull ince, organized his friends to transport an iPhone factory in Zhengzhou, also and relocate residents. Funiu mountain ranges facilitat- storms and high temperatures, is a drowning woman to safety. In several speedboats and other relief donated 100 million yuan. The PLA Air Force’s parachute ed the gathering and rising of the complex,” Chen said. “We still lack another, dozens of pedestrians link material to Henan, according to media Alibaba’s mapping service Auto- force ordered a brigade to reinforce airflow, which caused rainfall effective solutions and methods” their arms together to cautiously reports. “We drove overnight into the Navi has introduced an emergency two hazardous dam breaches along zones to remain over western and for such forecasting, he said. make their way across a flooded rain and have now finally arrived in reporting system where users can the Jialu River in ’s Xiangfu northwestern parts of Henan. “We are now putting a lot of effort road while water laps at their chests. Zhengzhou,” Liu said in a video clip aft- report flooded regions in real time. . In addition, small and medium- into tackling the difficulty. We believe One clip shows a man on his er traveling to Zhengzhou. ByteDance’s short video site Douyin The brigade rushed 650 troops scale convective weather — the ver- that as the technology improves, we knees rescuing a mother and her has created a special channel called and 38 vehicles to the breaches on tical movement of heat and can better forecast the events.” son and daughter from a hole filling Corporate help Henan Heavy Rain SOS, where people Wednesday morning. Soldiers built moisture in an unstable atmos- with water, while another shows A number of technology compa- stranded by the storm can upload a a 1.5-kilometer-long, 1.2-meter-tall phere, especially via updrafts and Wang Luxi contributed to this story. children being moved to safety by a nies have pledged donations and video on their whereabouts and ask sandbag wall. tractor. In another clip, young boys assistance to the flood relief efforts. for help via the platform. The PLA Rocket Force mobilized with umbrellas stand in a heavy E-commerce giant Alibaba one of its units in Henan on Wednes- downpour warning motorists away announced on Wednesday a 100 mil- Military steps in day morning. The PLA Central Thea- Passengers recount being from a flooded area. lion yuan ($15.44 million) donation to Thousands of soldiers are taking ter Command said it had used Many NGOs, charitable organiza- Henan, while the foundation of its part in the disaster-relief efforts in military satellites and aircraft to mon- tions and volunteer groups from founder, Jack Ma, pledged a 50 million the province. The People’s Libera- itor situations in the flood-hit areas. trapped in subway cars within and outside Henan have sent yuan donation. Alibaba’s payment tion Army Central Theater Com- their members to affected regions to unit, Ant Group, separately donated mand said troops, along with 148 Contact the writers at By LUO WANGSHU in Beijing help with disaster-relief operations 100 million yuan. vehicles and boats, have been sent to [email protected] and SHI BAOYIN in Zhengzhou

“The rainwater is continuing to rise and my mobile phone is about to run out of battery. I don’t know People rally to aid travelers stuck on train for 40 hours whether this will be my last post,” Ding Xiaopei said in a video on By ZOU SHUO the remainder were still on the train, to the station. “I’m grateful for the railway authorities have provided Tuesday evening. [email protected] China Central Television reported. railway staff on the train as they gave food and water to the passengers She posted the recording on Some of the passengers posted almost all their supplies to us,” one of on board, it said. WeChat, asking for help and show- More than 800 passengers strand- about their experiences on social the passengers said in an interview Two drivers halted train K599 on ing herself and the many other pas- ed on a train for 40 hours due to the media platforms such as Sina Weibo aired on China Central Television. Tuesday afternoon and avoided a sengers as they were trapped in heavy rain in Henan province are safe and Toutiao on Tuesday, saying they As Zhengzhou is a transportation serious accident when they noticed flooded subway cars in Zhengzhou, and have been given food and water, lacked food and water. The “Call for hub on the Beijing-Guangzhou rail- the rail line was submerged under capital of Henan province. according to railway authorities. emergency rescue from train K226” way line, the torrential rain has water in Zhengzhou. Hundreds of passengers were Train K226 stopped at the small hashtag was viewed more than 810 affected a large number of trains in “My first response was to slow the trapped for hours on Tuesday in Passengers are trapped in a Tielu Railway Station at 5 pm on million times on Sina Weibo as of the past two days. train down, but when I saw the rail- flooded subway cars on of flooded subway car following Monday, 30 minutes after it left Wednesday. Passengers on train K31, who had road was submerged I stopped the the Zhengzhou after down- heavy rain in Zhengzhou, Henan Zhengzhou. The station is about 40 People living near the station sent been stranded at a railway station in train. I didn’t have time to think pours hit the city. Twelve people province, on Tuesday. AFP kilometers from Zhengzhou, which supplies such as milk, bottled water , Henan, for more than 30 twice to make the decision, all thanks died and five were hospitalized, has been ravaged by torrential rain, and food to the passengers on hours, were transferred by local gov- to the regular training we receive,” officials reported. “I could sense the fear around according to the Wednesday, the China Railway ernment and railway authorities by said Zhang Zhijie, one of the drivers. By Wednesday morning, all of me in the carriage. There was some Zhengzhou Group. Zhengzhou Group said. buses to on Wednesday, All passengers were evacuated. the remaining passengers had turmoil. Someone tried to smash By Wednesday afternoon, about Zhengzhou’s district according to railway authorities. been rescued. the window, but other passengers 250 of the passengers had been col- government and teachers at a nearby The train stopped at Mugou Luo Wangshu contributed to The record rainstorm caused stopped him,” she said. lected by relatives and friends while vocational college also sent supplies Railway Station on Tuesday and this story. severe flooding, traffic disruptions “By the time rescuers showed up, and power outages. the water was at a very high level Ding, who was able to post outside the window. They broke the province on Tuesday night, bringing another message, was rescued after door and window in the front and Zhejiang, Guangdong bracing for typhoons strong winds and heavy rains. she and the other trapped passen- pulled passengers out one by one.” Cempaka is the first typhoon to gers experienced fearful, desperate Another passenger, surnamed make landfall in China this year. and touching moments. Li, recalled that the stranded pas- By Ma Zhenhuan in Hangzhou move at about 10 km/h, reaching On Wednesday, the Taizhou Mari- The typhoon landed on the coast of A woman told China Youth Daily sengers had supported each other. [email protected] the southeastern area of the East time Bureau increased its sea patrol Jiangcheng district in the city of that most passengers did not realize “Men were letting women go first China Sea around Friday evening, force, conducted inspections of key Yangjiang, packing winds of up to the situation would be so serious and everyone was making way for Typhoon In-Fa, which was gradually approaching Zhejiang areas and introduced a high level of 118.8 km/h near its eye, the provincial when the train made emergency any sick or disabled passengers.” approaching southeastern China on and making landfall in Taizhou in alert due to the possibility of the meteorological center said. stops from time to time. Ding finally returned home after Wednesday, is expected to bring southern Zhejiang. typhoon hitting the area. Yangjiang has implemented traf- “Then the train made another midnight, where she found a note heavy rain in coastal areas of eastern Most areas of the province are The Taizhou Bureau of Culture, fic control on many roads and emergency stop between stations her children had left for her, Zhejiang province over the week- expected to experience torrential Radio, Tourism and Sports issued issued a red alert, the highest level, and got stuck there. I could see the reminding her to drink some water. end, the National Meteorological rains from Friday to Sunday. an emergency notice to close scenic for rainstorms. water rising, and it began to pour “I felt so lucky and blessed to Center said. Li Ruimin, a meteorologist at the spots, suspend large-scale outdoor The city also has called back 384 into the carriage,” she said. come home,” she said. As of 2 pm on Wednesday, the Zhejiang Provincial Meteorological cultural and tourism activities and fishing vessels and asked 2,680 fish- The woman said she saw the center of the typhoon, the sixth this Service Center, told Hangzhou-based organize the evacuation of stranded farming workers to be evacuated water level keep rising, and eventu- Qi Xin in Zhengzhou contributed year, was approximately 560 kilo- Qianjiang Evening News that the passengers. ashore. Nearly 5,000 people in the ally the level got to people’s chests to this story. meters east of Taiwan, moving typhoon, formed on Sunday in the In another development, Typhoon city were evacuated to safety. and necks. She felt desperate and northwest toward the coastal areas western Pacific, was one of the major Cempaka, the seventh typhoon of began to make arrangements in Contact the writers at of Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. reasons that Henan province was this year, made landfall in the coastal Cai Jingwen, Jiang Lai and Xinhua case of her death. [email protected] The typhoon was expected to being hit by devastating rainfall. area of southern China’s Guangdong contributed to this story.