Floods in China: fear of death in the brown broth

In China, the worst storm in decades caused massive flooding. In Henan Province, many people were trapped in cars and buildings by the water. Head of State Xi promised help.

Yesterday evening in Zhengzhou in the Chinese part of Henan. People stand at the stairs of a subway station. They applaud when firefighters finally arrive and run down the stairs in the direction of the subway shaft – to help the women, men and children who are terrified of their lives in flooded wagons. Because the brown broth is partly up to their shoulders.

“Cling on to avoid being washed away”

“There was so much water, many were simply washed away”, sAges a passenger on state television after escaping from the subway station and outside. “We stood in the water, there was also a child, and after a short time we were so exhausted that we almost gave up. We clung to the handles. My arms are full of bruises. We had to hold on with all our strength not to be washed away. ”

The man tells the TV reporter all this half-naked. Because because his wet clothes pulled him down in the crowded subway, he had to throw them and his backpack away. He undressed almost completely – except for his underpants.

Numerous dead from the floods

Motorists and residents of numerous houses in central China were also caught by the masses of water and trapped. Yesterday it had rained as much within about an hour as it had otherwise statistically seen in six months. In many places the water and electricity supply has failed.

So far, a total of at least 25 people have died in the floods – including in the fast-paced subway in Zhengzhou. At a press conference, officials announced that seven people were missing. But it won’t stop there. And because the media in China cannot report freely, the numbers of victims mentioned are often dubious. Because these must be approved by the authorities.

So far 200,000 people have been brought to safety

However, according to various authorities, around 200,000 people have now been brought to safety. The total number of those affected by the floods is significantly higher. In the particularly affected city of Zhengzhou alone, more than ten million people live, about as many as in Lower Saxony and Hamburg added together. Accordingly, the damage to property runs into billions.

The Chinese part of Inner Mongolia is also affected by heavy rain and flooding. According to unconfirmed media reports, two dams have broken there. Thousands of firefighters and soldiers are deployed in the affected regions.

Xi speaks of a “very serious situation”

The climate expert in Greenpeace’s China office, Li Shuo, said that ARDRadio: “Both in Europe, especially in Germany, as well as in Henan in China, we are seeing these floods these days. These extreme weather conditions remind us again how urgent it is to do something about climate change. The best active ingredient against climate change.” worldwide it is to hurry with the energy turnaround in order to reduce the emission of CO2. ”

In the morning, China’s head of state and party leader Xi Jinping was also summoned to the floods. This is remarkable in that Xi very rarely speaks about current events in his country. In a statement, China’s head of state spoke of a very serious situation. He promised extensive help from the authorities.