China Rains Kill 55: More Storms In Forecast
China rains have killed 55. An alert has been issued as more storms are forecast. Authorities in Southern China have reported at least 55 dead and 14 missing due to torrential rainfall during the last week.
The heavy rain has caused flooding and dangerous mountain landslides. In addition to the heavy rain, the storms have been accompanied by hail and damaging winds.
As reported by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, 10 different provinces, or municipalities, have been affected by the deadly storms. The province of Guangdong was the most heavily impacted, with 36 deaths and 10 people unaccounted for.
China rains killed 55 residents already, and more storms are on the way. The meteorological society of China has issued a blue alert warning for the next two days. Southern China is expected to experience more heavy rain that may include strong winds and hail.
As reported by Xinhuanet News, China has a weather alert system that is categorized by colors. The color blue is the lowest alert level. However, the storms are predicted to be quite strong. Guangdong and Guangxi provinces are expected to see nearly four inches of rain in a period of 24 hours.
China’s National Meteorological Center has urged residents of Southern China to be aware and cautious from now until Monday, when the storm system is expected to pass.
As reported by NASA.gov, heavy rains caused a similar situation in 2007. Heavy storms and intense periods of rain caused devastating landslides and flooding. Some Provinces experienced up to 20 inches of rain from June 4 to June 11, 2007.
In 2007, the China rains killed 71 and left 13 missing, within a period of one week.
Areas of Southern China are prone to devastating storms as heavy rains are likely to cause landslides, in the regions surrounded steep by mountains. Technology to predict landslides is available, but expensive. The provinces in the areas at highest risk are often poverty stricken, and lack the resources to purchase and maintain the necessary equipment.
As the China rains killed 55 people already, more rain is a frightening possibility. At this point, authorities can only assume that the predicted rain might cause another landslide.
[Image via Wikimedia]
