Deadly downpours have triggered landslides and floods that swept away cars and destroyed roads in Beijing, as the remnants of Typhoon Doksuri unleashed the heaviest deluge in a decade over parts of northern China.
Two days of rainfall have overwhelmed riverbeds around the western outskirts of the Chinese capital, turning once calm waterways into ferocious torrents that have swept into people’s homes and torn down streets, according to video on state television and social media.
At least 11 people have been killed and 27 others reported missing, state broadcaster CCTV reported, while more than 127,000 people have been evacuated from the city.
The sprawling megacity, home to nearly 22 million people, saw an entire month’s worth of rainfall over 48 hours – an average 175.7 millimeters (nearly 7 inches) – according to CNN Weather.
But in western districts hit hardest – and where most of the fatalities were reported – the downpours were far worse. In Mentougou district, the average rainfall was more than 18 inches, according to data from Beijing’s meteorological service, while nearby Fangshan saw 16 inches of rain.
The storm is the deadliest to hit Beijing since 2012 when floods killed 77 people – a toll that authorities initially tried to cover up.
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China faces typhoons and heavy rains during the summer months, but the frequency and destruction that the annual rains bring have been exacerbated by climate change, experts warn. At least 300 people were killed in floods in Zhengzhou, central Henan province, in 2021.
More than 52,000 people had to be evacuated from Beijing's Mentougou district as flood waters gushed into homes. Pedro Pardo/AFP/Getty Images
Videos aired by CCTV showed one road bridge in Beijing that had broken in half with a queue of cars on top as several vehicles in the river below were swept away.
Other videos showed rescue workers and residents wading through waist-deep water as they tried to escape the rising floods.
Authorities in China have not released any estimates yet on potential financial losses but had warned before the storm landed that torrential rains could damage crops and farmland just weeks before the normal autumn harvest.
Doksuri was one of the strongest typhoons to hit China in recent years. It made landfall in the southeastern coastal province of Fujian, where authorities say more than 2.6 million people were affected.
The typhoon weakened to a storm as it made its way north but unleashed huge amounts of rainfall.
Before hitting Fujian, the typhoon had killed at least 39 people in the Philippines and lashed parts of southern Taiwan.
Passengers stranded in trains
Among those caught up in the chaos were hundreds of passengers on trains that were left stranded in the rural outskirts of Beijing, a state-run radio station reported.
Some passengers were stuck for 30 hours without food, a state-affiliated TV station in the southwest province of Guizhou reported based on interviews with two passengers who were traveling to Mentougou from Zhangjiakou, a city in neighboring Hebei province that hosted some of Beijing’s 2022 Winter Olympics events.
“Now the rain is getting heavier and heavier, there seem to be signs of landslides in the front. The train can’t go forward or back. Some people on the train are already feeling sick,” one passenger told the TV station.
“Supplies can not come in, people are hungry… the car door is locked, we can’t go anywhere,” the second traveler was quoted as saying.
At least 1,870 passengers and 68 staff had been stranded on two trains and were finally led to safe ground by Monday afternoon, state-run news agency Xinhua reported, citing Beijing’s state railway operator.
Even as Doksuri tapers off, there is little relief on the horizon.
Authorities are preparing for incoming Khanun, the sixth typhoon projected to hit China this year, with forecasters expecting storm tides to hit coastal areas of eastern Zhejiang province until Thursday.
