Remnants of Typhoon Gaemi trigger flash floods in northeast China

BEIJING: According to state media reports on Sunday ( Jul 28 ), persistent heavy rain from Tropical Storm Gaemi caused flash floods in northeast China on the border with North Korea and caused railway disruptions and landslides in other areas of the nation.

Two officers, including the deputy governor of Linjiang town in Jilin state, went missing during disaster recovery efforts, state broadcaster CCTV said, citing area regulators. More than 27 000 people were forced to flee northeast China, and thousands of factories shut down procedures.

By Sunday, the cyclonic breezes from Gaemi, which had been downgraded from a tornado, had largely dissipated, but some parts of China remained vigilant for flood risks brought on by earlier rains. Forecasters warned that remnants of Gaemi’s great cloud banks could also dump rain on now flooded cities.

Heavy rain and strong winds swept through southern Fujian state on Friday as it made its way from the southeastern coast to the popular interior. The most powerful storm to strike the nation this year.

Jilin state, bordering North Korea, issued upgraded instructions for large rains and flash floods on Sunday night. Linjiang officials shut schools, businesses and companies on Sunday, warning that “major flood disasters does result”.

In southeastern China, a flood near Hengyang town in Hunan province on Sunday night trapped 18 persons, of whom six were found dead and six injured were rescued, CCTV reported, while work continued to find the missing.

As the wind moved north, some passenger rail ranges resumed in the southern regions of Fujian and Jiangxi, while rail service were suspended in Guangdong province and Hainan area in southwestern China.

Gaemi, which killed tens as it swept through Taiwan and worsened annual floods in the Philippines, has affected nearly 630, 000 people in Fujian, with nearly half of them being relocated, state news agency Xinhua reported.