Hundreds of Thousands Evacuated as Deadly Flooding Grips China's Southeast

Heavy rainfall in China’s southeast prompted the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of people in July, according to Chinese state-owned media.

These videos, distributed by China Fire Department’s official Weibo account, show rescue operations in the southeastern provinces of Jiangxi and Zhejiang.

One dramatic video shows a man rescued from his car in fast-moving floodwaters in Ji’an, Jiangxi, on July 9. Another shows a group of elderly tourists being rescued from a partially submerged bus in Lanxi, Zhejiang, the following day.

Chinese media agency Xinhua reported that a total of 22 people had been killed and over 7 million affected by the heavy rainfall and flooding, which started in June.

Citing local authorities, Xinhua said that more than 594,000 people had been evacuated, over 460,000 hectares of crops had been affected, and billions of dollars worth of economic loss had been incurred.

It said provincial forecasters predicted rainstorms would continue into the following week. Credit: China Fire Department via Storyful