Zhengzho, China, 21 July. - (ANA) - At least 12 people have died and 100,000 have been evacuated in Zhengzhou city, the capital of central China’s Henan province, after heavy rains led to large areas of the province being submerged in water.

 

Visuals posted on social media show flooded streets, submerged subway stations and people trapped in neck-high water inside subway trains. Entire vehicles were seen to be either covered in water or floating across flooded neighbourhoods.

 

The rain in the city was estimated by some weather forecasters to be the worst in at least 1,000 years, according to news agency Reuters.

 

The city, on the banks of the Yellow River, is home to at least 12 million people.

 

More than 200 millimetres of rain fell in one hour in the city on Tuesday, forcing train operators to halt services. Apart from Zhengzhou’s transport services, schools and hospital services were also badly affected.

 

The First Affiliated Hospital in the city – a large treatment centre with 7,000 beds – lost all power, including reserve. Efforts were ongoing on Wednesday to transport at least 600 critically ill patients from there to other hospitals, according to the People’s Daily.

 

The total rainfall that poured down on Zhengzhou from Saturday evening till Tuesday was recorded at 617.1mm, almost matching the annual average of 640.88mm.

 

Local media cited meteorologists as saying that the rain seen in over three days was seen only “once in a thousand years”.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/21 July 2021 - - -