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Posts Tagged ‘rains’

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Icy rains force 58,000 to evacuate in southern China

In Uncategorized on January 8, 2011 at 4:15 am

 Torrential icy rain across five provinces in southern China has forced 58,000 people to evacuate from their damaged homes, causing economic losses of $203.8 million, the ministry of civil affairs said on Wednesday.


Freezing rain has pummeled the provinces of Jiangxi, Hunan, Chongqing, Sichuan and Guizhou in the past few days, killing one person and causing more than 1,200 houses to collapse, the ministry added.


The harsh weather in southern China, where winter is usually relatively mild, has damaged 142,400 hectares of crops in the provinces that produce rice, timber and coal and caused economic losses of 1.35 billion yuan ($203.8 million) as of Tuesday, the ministry added.


In southwestern Guizhou province, 22,800 people were forced to evacuate from their homes on Tuesday, state news agency Xinhua reported.


The icy weather and sleet have paralyzed traffic and strained power networks in some areas ahead of the vast migrations of people for the Lunar New Year holiday next month.


Highways in Guizhou have been clogged in the past few days, leaving thousands stranded in their cars as almost all expressways in the province were closed, said the Guizhou Provincial Department of Transport.


On Tuesday, traffic slowly returned to normal in Guizhou as all ice-covered highways reopened after being closed for over 30 hours. Guizhou’s provincial weather forecaster warned that it could take five more days for the cold and rainy weather to subside.


In early 2008, freezing weather across southern China caused power cuts and transport chaos, preventing many residents from spending the Lunar New Year with their families. The disruption rippled across the region, causing a brief spike in food prices.

Source: SGGP

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Heavy rains hit Australia’s flood-drenched northeast

In Uncategorized on January 8, 2011 at 4:13 am

 Heavy rains threatened further flooding in Australia’s drenched northeast Thursday as besieged Rockhampton cut supplies to “irresponsible” residents who refused to leave water-bound homes.


Torrential downpours could cause flash-flooding and worsen existing floods, the weather bureau said, as water levels slowly started to recede in regional centre Rockhampton, a town virtually surrounded by a brown inland sea.


Australia’s coal-mining and farming belt near Brisbane is suffering “biblical” floods across an area the size of Texas, after La Nina, a weather system, deluged Queensland state with its wettest year on record.


Emergency personnel look for residents in need of evacuation after the swollen Fitzroy River broke its banks and flooded the city of Rockhampton on January 5, 2011

Waters peaked in Rockhampton at lower levels than feared and slowly started to recede, while downstream other communities braced for the floods. The disaster, described as the state’s worst, has inundated or cut off 40 towns.


Entire towns have been airlifted as the murky tide gushes across Queensland, destroying crops, roads and bridges and sweeping 10 people to their deaths, along with thousands of animals.


The crisis has cost about Aus$1 billion ($1 billion US) in lost production at Queensland’s coking coal mines, which account for half the world’s supply, putting upward inflationary pressure on the shaky global economy.


Meanwhile, thousands of people have evacuated or are trying to salvage homes and belongings, while dealing with the threat of poisonous snakes, crocodiles and disease-carrying mosquitoes as they negotiate the sludge and rain.


Rockhampton’s mayor Brad Carter angrily slammed residents, including those with children, who refused to evacuate and now relied on food and groceries brought by emergency personnel wading through snake-infested waters.


“We have taken a decision, and we make it very clear, that we cannot put emergency services resources at risk bringing in those supplies,” Carter said.


“They have to now respect and understand that because they make that choice… they will not be getting resupply of essential services, goods and grocery items provided by emergency services personnel.”


Acting police superintendent David Peff said that wading into the waters — sometimes up to chest height — was dangerous for his men and backed the mayor’s pleas to isolated residents in the town of 75,000.


“Every time we put police or SES (State Emergency Service) people into that water… my personal concern is people that are helping will end up being bitten by a snake,” Peff told reporters.


Residents of Condamine, which was completely evacuated, were making their way back to the deserted town, while only about 100 of Emerald’s 11,000 inhabitants remained in emergency shelters as of Wednesday night.


Australia’s sodden 2010 — the third wettest year on record — broke a decade-old drought in some areas and brought the unusual sight of waterfalls cascading off Uluru, or Ayers Rock, as torrents raced along parched riverbeds.


Lush, green landscapes in New South Wales state forced film-makers to postpone shooting for “Mad Max 4”, set in a post-apocalypse desert, while an Outback yachting regatta went ahead for the first time in 10 years.

Source: SGGP

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Tropical depression to cause rains in southern region

In Uncategorized on December 16, 2010 at 10:11 am

The tropical low-pressure system is likely to cause rains in southern central and southeastern regions, especially in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces.

Construction of the dyke on the Red River’s right bank, is halted due to unusual flooding (Photo: VNA)

From Tuesday onwards, the depression will move westward at 5-10 kilometers an hour, crossing Phu Quy Island in the Binh Thuan Province to affect the mainland, said the National Hydro Meteorological Forecasting Center.


On Monday, the system was centered about 200-220 kilometers east of Khanh Hoa to Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces.


The Central Flood and Storm Prevention and Control Center and the National Committee for Search and Rescue, have instructed local authorities to secure all boats and it need be guide them away from the dangerous seas. The main area of concern is 7-14 degrees latitude north and 113 degrees longitude east.


Provincial authorities should report any changes about the weather conditions to the central organizations, thereby preparing them for any sea rescue that might occur.


Meanwhile, in the northern region, a cold front has triggered showers in provinces of Lao Cai, Yen Bai and Phu Tho.


The national weather bureau said that the rains have combined with the floodwaters flowing down from the upper reaches, causing unusual flooding in the depleted Red River.


The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said, the recent heavy rains and the floodwaters, have brought abundant irrigation water for the northern provinces. Until recently this area has experienced a severe drought.


The national weather bureau has forecasted the floodwaters will continue to rise and will peak on the Red River on Tuesday.


Additionally, weather in the north will turn extreme cold, with strong northeasterly winds. Temperature in the famous tourist destination Sa Pa will drop to 4-5 degrees Celsius and at the top of the Hoang Lien Son range, it will only be -1 degree Celsius.

Source: SGGP

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Rains to continue in south central region

In Uncategorized on November 18, 2010 at 1:57 pm

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Tropical depression causes more rains to flood hit central region

In Uncategorized on November 5, 2010 at 10:59 am

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Rains, floods hit southcentral provinces

In Uncategorized on November 1, 2010 at 2:12 pm

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Tropical depression to bring rains

In Uncategorized on October 14, 2010 at 6:35 pm

Affected by a tropical low pressure zone, which was on the northern part of Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands as of 7am August 19, the waters off the central coastal area between Danang City and Binh Thuan Province will become rough with rains, the national weather bureau said Thursday.

A tropical low pressure zone will bring medium to heavy rains to the central and southern central regions

In the mainland, central and southern central provinces will see medium to heavy rains, some places might experience thunderstorms, said the National Hydro Meteorological Forecasting Center.


The center said residents should keep watch of tornados and strong winds during the thunderstorms.


The tropical depression will slowly move westward at a speed of 5-10 kilometers an hour in the next 24 hours, the center forecasted.

Source: SGGP

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Tropical depression to bring rains

In Uncategorized on August 19, 2010 at 11:23 am

Affected by a tropical low pressure zone, which was on the northern part of Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands as of 7am August 19, the waters off the central coastal area between Danang City and Binh Thuan Province will become rough with rains, the national weather bureau said Thursday.

A tropical low pressure zone will bring medium to heavy rains to the central and southern central regions

In the mainland, central and southern central provinces will see medium to heavy rains, some places might experience thunderstorms, said the National Hydro Meteorological Forecasting Center.


The center said residents should keep watch of tornados and strong winds during the thunderstorms.


The tropical depression will slowly move westward at a speed of 5-10 kilometers an hour in the next 24 hours, the center forecasted.

Source: SGGP

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New rains leave 33 more dead in flood-ravaged China

In Uncategorized on August 14, 2010 at 7:23 am

BEIJING, Aug 13, 2010 (AFP) – Torrential rains on Friday battered several parts of western China, killing at least 33 people and heightening fears of a disease outbreak in a mudslide-ravaged town where more than 1,150 have died.


Health authorities said survivors of the deadly floods and landslides in Zhouqu, a remote town in the mountains of Gansu province in China’s northwest, were facing a grim situation after clinics were damaged and vaccines ruined.


The bad weather showed no signs of letting up, with at least 33 people killed and 32 missing after floods and landslides in other parts of Gansu and neighbouring Sichuan province, as China battles its worst flooding in a decade.


In Zhouqu, 588 people are still missing after the weekend avalanche of mud and rocks, which levelled an area five kilometres (three miles) long and 300 metres wide. The latest official death toll stood at 1,156 as of Friday.


“Rescue work is continuing, but the recent rains have caused some difficulties,” Yan Jinxin, a spokeswoman for the Zhouqu county government, told AFP by telephone on Friday.


“The roads are muddy and hard to get through,” she said, adding that more rain was expected in the afternoon.


An official with the Gannan prefectural government, who gave only his surname, Yu, said that more raincoats, gloves and medicines were needed in the mudslide zone.


But state television announced a piece of good news, saying water supplies had been restored to the county on Friday.


The risk of the spread of disease was nevertheless mounting, a health ministry official told the state Xinhua news agency.


“A large number of rescue and relief workers and survivors are now living there, increasing the risk of intestinal and respiratory infectious diseases,” said the official.


Efforts to disinfect the area were difficult, and the decomposition of human and animal corpses buried under the mountains of sludge and debris in the town would aggravate the situation, the official said.


About 800 medical workers have been dispatched to the region following the mudslides, which state media described as the worst in 60 years in China.


Tonnes of garlic and Sichuan pepper, which in China are believed to guard against various ailments, have been sent to Zhouqu, state media said, citing local health authorities.


Troops were still using excavators and explosives to clear blockages in the Bailong river which cuts through Zhouqu.


There had been fears that a barrier lake created by the rubble could bring further chaos if it were to burst, but Zhang Guoxin, vice-director of the Gansu land resources department, said late Thursday it had been drained.


Zhang also said the risk of any of the dams along the Bailong bursting had been “basically eliminated”, according to a statement on the provincial government’s website.


Elsewhere in Gansu, 28 people were killed and 24 others left missing in the cities of Longnan and Tianshui, not far from Zhouqu, the civil affairs ministry said.


Local authorities were evacuating residents and sending tents, instant noodles and bottled water to those areas.


In Sichuan, five people were killed and eight missing in rural, mountainous Mianzhu, Xinhua said, citing a local official. Thousands were also evacuated in Shaanxi province following heavy rains.


The mudslides in Zhouqu are the latest in a string of weather-related disasters across China. More than 2,100 people were left dead or missing and 12 million evacuated nationwide before the Zhouqu incident.


The civil affairs ministry said Friday it had not calculated a new nationwide flood death toll.

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Source: SGGP

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Rains bring new misery to China mudslide town

In Uncategorized on August 12, 2010 at 7:21 am

ZHOUQU, China (AFP) – Fresh heavy rains on Thursday brought more misery to a town in northwest China devastated by mudslides that have already killed more than 1,100 people, with new floods leaving more missing.


Thousands of soldiers and rescuers were battling to clean up roads blocked by cascades of mud and sludge unleashed by storms overnight, complicating the task of getting food, water and medicine to those in need.

A woman offers a child something to eat amid the rubble of landslides that have devastated the northwestern Chinese town of Zhouqu. AFP

So far, 1,117 people have been confirmed dead in the disaster in Zhouqu, a town nestled in the mountains of Gansu province. Another 627 residents went missing at the weekend, and three more disappeared overnight, state media said. “The rain has had an impact on rescue work. It’s hindering the distribution of drinking water,” Han Huiping, a 25-year-old firefighter from a nearby town working on the relief effort, told AFP. “We’re worried.”


Soldiers and residents said heavy rains fell for about four hours overnight, turning one of the main streets in Zhouqu into a small river and flooding army tents on the roadside leading into the disaster zone.


Workers used diggers to clear the massive avalanche of mud and rocks that effectively split the town in two at the weekend as rain fell early Thursday. The peaks surrouding the town were shrouded in dark clouds.


The shortest route into Zhouqu from the provincial capital Lanzhou, mainly being used by relief crews, was blocked, the official Xinhua news agency reported.


Some shops in town had run out of drinking water well before noon, but new supplies appeared to be trickling in, an AFP correspondent witnessed.


“We’re really worried, but there is nothing much we can do,” said one villager who asked not to be named.


The bad weather was expected to continue at least through Friday.


The water level in the Bailong river, which cuts through Zhouqu, was higher on Thursday and flowing more quickly, an AFP correspondent saw. State media said the level had risen by three metres (six feet).


Troops were using excavators and explosives to clear blockages in the river and drain a barrier lake created by the rubble that, if it were to burst, could bring further destruction to areas already levelled by the torrent of mud.


Officials insisted Wednesday the risk had been minimised.


“The danger of the barrier lake collapsing suddenly has been basically eliminated,” the vice-minister of water resources, Jiao Yong, told a press conference in Beijing.


Provincial authorities have nevertheless evacuated areas near the lake, the official Xinhua news agency reported.


The mudslides levelled an area five kilometres (three miles) long and 300 metres wide, Xinhua said. Floodwaters up to three storeys high have submerged half the county.


Fears of an outbreak of water-borne disease mounted, with corpses still unclaimed and residents living in the rough without proper sanitary conditions. Army crews in chemical suits repeatedly sprayed disinfectant in the area.


Tons of garlic and Sichuan pepper, which some experts believe to be helpful in the prevention of certain ailments, have been sent to Zhouqu, the local health bureau said, according to the China Daily.


Doctors were encouraging relatives to cremate the remains of their loved ones as soon as possible to prevent health problems, but traditional burials are preferred in the area with a population that is one-third Tibetan.


Nearly 800 medical workers — also concerned about how the high summer temperatures could affect the precarious public health situation — have been dispatched to the scene, state media said.


Loudspeakers in town broadcast messages instructing residents how to protect themselves from disease. So far, no major problems have been reported.


The mudslides are the latest in a string of weather-related disasters, as China battles its worst flooding in a decade. More than 2,100 people were left dead or missing and 12 million evacuated before the Gansu tragedy.

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Source: SGGP