China steps up search for missing after flash flood kills 18, leaves thousands homeless in northwest
- More than 6,000 people across six villages in Qinghai capital affected as intense downpour triggers ‘mountain torrent’
- National relief response deputy commander urges local officials to treat deadly disaster as a warning on risk management
The flood hit Datong county in the provincial capital Xining in the early hours of Thursday morning, following torrential rains overnight. More than 6,000 people across six villages were “affected”, according to the local government, which issued a level 2 alarm – the second-highest alert on a national four-tier emergency response system.
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Deadly landslide and flash floods kill 16 in northwest China, 36 people remain missing
“Several houses, roads and bridges were damaged, with at least two buildings washed away,” Han Xianghui, deputy director of the provincial emergency management department, said on Friday.
Continuous rainfall in recent days had saturated and loosened the top soil in the area, the situation made worse by the sudden, intense rainstorm on Wednesday night, which triggered the “mountain torrent”, Han explained.
The intense showers caused the water flow in the Shadai River to swell to about 100 cubic metres per second, unleashing the deluge, he said.
This comes days after seven people were killed when mountain rains triggered a flash flood at a tourist spot in southwestern Sichuan province, as vast swathes of China battle an uptick in extreme weather.
