Beijing accelerates recovery efforts after rare downpours

BEIJING -- Beijing is ramping up recovery efforts to restore power, clear roads and deliver essential supplies to residents displaced by flash floods and landslides triggered by some of the most intense rainfall in the city's mountainous outskirts.

In Miyun district, one of the worst-hit areas, a makeshift supply hub in Xizhuangzi village was bustling by Wednesday morning, with stacks of bottled water, instant noodles, sausages and preserved eggs ready for dispatch.

More than 60 tonnes of emergency supplies were distributed across Miyun on Monday and Tuesday, and on Wednesday morning, four helicopters were deployed to continue airdropping relief materials. Repair crews were also dispatched to restore damaged communication and power lines, according to local authorities.

As of midnight Monday, 30 people had been confirmed dead in Beijing, including 28 in Miyun district and two in Yanqing district. Authorities said that the Miyun Reservoir recorded its highest inflow, highest water level and fastest outflow since its construction in 1959.

In Yanqing, more than 4,200 people have been relocated. Some 488 rescue teams, comprising over 8,300 personnel, were dispatched to carry out relief efforts. Communication has been reestablished in all previously unreachable villages, damaged roads cleared, and essential services such as power supply restored.

Taotiaogou, a remote village in Yanqing, was among the hardest hit. After over 48 hours of rescue efforts, its 49 residents were gradually brought to safety.

"I've never seen such ferocious floodwaters in my life," said 89-year-old Zhai Cheng'an, recalling how his home was quickly engulfed by muddy torrents.

Zhai Yonghui, deputy Party chief of Taotiaogou village, said the downpour intensified at 10:20 pm on July 26, breaking local rainfall records. Yanqing district plans to help residents from the devastated village start a new life in other sites.

"The water will recede, and we will have homes again. We believe in that," he added.

As part of ongoing recovery efforts, train services on the Beijing-Baotou high-speed railway will resume Thursday after being suspended due to severe rain in Beijing and Hebei province earlier in the week, according to China Railway Hohhot Group Co., Ltd.

The heavy rains have also battered other parts of northern China.

In Hebei, eight people have been confirmed dead and 18 remain missing in Xinglong county, while eight people were killed after a rain-triggered landslide struck a village in Luanping county. In Shanxi province, 10 people were confirmed dead after a midsize bus carrying 14 passengers went missing Sunday morning following days of heavy rainfall.