Tragic Loss: Floods in Northwest China Leave 10 Dead, 33 Still Missing
China Battles Severe Weather Events in Gansu and Guangdong Provinces
China is currently grappling with extreme weather events in two of its provinces, Gansu and Guangdong, causing significant humanitarian and economic challenges.
In Gansu province, located in northwestern China, torrential rains have led to deadly flash floods that have claimed at least 13 lives, left 30 missing, and caused widespread damage. Nearly 10,000 residents have been evacuated, and approximately 4,000 are stranded amid floods and landslides, due to the region's loess soil which increases landslide risks. Roads have collapsed, homes have been submerged, and mudslides have severely affected mountainous villages.
The Chinese government, under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, has ordered comprehensive rescue and disaster relief efforts. Beijing has allocated around 100 million yuan (about US$14 million) for relief efforts in Gansu. The situation is complex due to mud, rough terrain, and damaged infrastructure.
In Guangdong province, heavy rainfall and flooding have been caused by Tropical Storm Podul. The storm has disrupted daily life, forced school closures, court adjournments, and flight cancellations, particularly affecting Hong Kong, which issued its highest "black" rainstorm warning.
Nationwide, natural disasters including floods, landslides, earthquakes, droughts, and hailstorms have affected over 23 million people and caused direct economic losses of around 54.11 billion yuan (US$7.55 billion) in the first half of 2025. Flooding alone accounted for 90% of these losses and nearly one-third of the deaths (307 people dead or missing) during this period.
In response, China is enhancing its disaster preparedness through measures such as developing a national monitoring and early warning platform, improving weather forecasts, and deploying advanced technology like drones for real-time disaster assessment and emergency response.
The ongoing government-led rescue, relief, and mitigation efforts in both provinces reflect a heightened focus on adaptive responses to climate-linked disasters.
In a video shared by the Communist Party-backed People's Daily, more than a dozen rescuers were seen clinging to a rope as they pushed through torrents of mud in Gansu province.
China, being the world's biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, is also a global renewable energy powerhouse aiming to make its massive economy carbon-neutral by 2060.
This year has seen a series of weather-related incidents in China, with the deaths and disappearances in Gansu and Guangdong being the latest. Additionally, a landslide in a village in Hebei province, which encircles Beijing, claimed another eight lives.
Local weather authorities have predicted more rain in some areas, including near the Yellow River – China's second-biggest waterway. The government has also allocated 100 million yuan towards recovery efforts in Guangdong province.
References:
- China battles severe weather events in Gansu and Guangdong provinces
- China's Xi orders utmost effort to rescue missing in landslide
- Tropical Storm Podul weakens as it approaches China's Guangdong
- China's Xi orders all regions to overcome complacency amid extreme weather
- The severe weather events in Gansu and Guangdong provinces not only pose significant humanitarian challenges but also threaten China's business and economic stability.
- The environmental science community is deeply concerned about the impact of climate-change on China's vulnerable regions, as seen in the recent floods and landslides in Gansu and Guangdong.
- The epaper headlines are filled with reports of war-and-conflicts and crime-and-justice, but the current natural disasters, such as the ones in Gansu and Guangdong, are alarming reminders of the real threats posed by unfavorable climatic conditions.
- In addition to the loss of life and property, the accidents and fires caused by the extreme weather events are also causing delays in court proceedings and flight schedules.
- As China aims to become a global renewable energy powerhouse, it is crucial to invest heavily in environmental-science research to better understand and predict climate-change phenomena and mitigate their disastrous consequences.
- General-news outlets are closely monitoring the ongoing weather-related incidents in China, including the latest accidental deaths and disappearances in Gansu, Guangdong, and Hebei provinces.
