Hundreds dead or missing as floods and mudslides devastate China
Extreme rain events, flooding and mudslides in northeast and southern China have left hundreds of people dead, injured or missing.
“The Heilongjiang Provincial Hydrological Bureau forecast the stretch of the Heilong River between Tongjiang and Fuyuan County will witness the largest flooding in its history. Authorities in Tongjiang have started a Grade I response preparing for floods,” said a report.
- The deluge has destroyed or damaged at least 210,000 houses in Jilin, Heilongjiang, Guangdong and Liaoning provinces, with the direct economic losses estimated at 18.5 billion yuan (3 billion U.S. dollars), said a report.
- Torrential rains and floods triggered by Typhoon Utor have affected 680,000 people in eight cities in Guangxi. Some 16,660 hectares of crops have been damaged and 1,080 houses have been destroyed.
- In Guangdong Province, TY UTOR has affected more than 2.5 million people destroying or damaging about 19,000 houses and forcing 513,000 people to relocate. The extreme rain has also ruined 173,333 hectares of farmland, according to local authorities.
- “In central China’s Hunan Province, landslides triggered by continuous rainfalls over the past two days have left one dead and 14 others buried or missing,” said a report.
[NOTE: Some of the stats quoted above are already outdated as the catastrophe continues to unfold in China on an almost hourly basis.]
Original caption: People walk on ruins after the flood in Nankouqian Township, Fushun, northeast China’s Liaoning Province, Aug. 18, 2013. The death toll has risen to 54 as of Monday morning after the worst flooding in decades ravaged Fushun City, northeast China’s Liaoning Province, said the local authorities on Aug. 19, 2013. Extreme rainstorms battered Liaoning from Thursday to Saturday, leaving many rivers flooded in Fushun. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong)
- In Guangdong province, 19,000 houses have collapsed or sustained severe damage, forcing about 513,000 residents to relocate. The direct economic loss is estimated at 490 million yuan (80 million U.S. dollars).
- “Heilongjiang Province reported [37] flood-related deaths. The floods have destroyed over 2,500 houses and severely damaged at least 12,500 others, with direct economic losses estimated at 7.13 billion yuan (1.15 billion U.S. dollars).”
- In Jilin Province, at least “35,000 houses were destroyed or damaged with direct economic losses at 2.4 billion yuan (387 million U.S. dollars).”
- “As of 10 a.m. Monday, a total of 1.8 million people in 30 counties in Liaoning Province have been affected and 162,000 have been evacuated from flooded areas. More than 6,100 buildings have collapsed and the total direct economic loss is around 8.5 billion yuan(1.39 billion U.S. dollars), according to the ministry.”
Don’t bring your car to China!
Heping Town in Shantou City, south China’s Guangdong Province devastated by extreme rain events and severe flooding, August19, 2013. (Xinhua/Yao Jun). More images…
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Philippines’ Cebu declares calamity as sunken ferry leaks oil
The central Philippine province of Cebu has declared a state of calamity as an oil slick from a ferry that sank last week spread to about 20 percent of the coast, said a report.
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16 Counties across three states declared agricultural disaster areas
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has designated 16 counties in three states as agricultural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by frost and freezing temperatures that occurred March 25-29, 2013.
The disaster designations are
- Alabama: Baldwin, Escambia, Mobile, Washington, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Covington and Monroe counties.
- Florida: Escambia, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties.
- Mississippi: George, Greene, Jackson and Wayne counties.
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Beaver Creek Fire Consumes 100,000 acres
As of August 18, 2013 10pm, the Beaver Creek Fire had grown to at about 100,921 acres with 8% containment.
Beaver Creek Fire. Red Flag conditions, including higher temperatures and wind gusts to 38 miles per hour, increased fire activity on the Beaver Creek Fire. Credit: Sawtooth National Forest/ USFS.
For additional information see
Fire Earth 