Since the end of June, many parts of my country's north and south have encountered heavy rainfall, and the Central Meteorological Observatory has issued rainstorm warnings for 7 consecutive days. How is the flood situation in various places? How to defend? What are the practical measures to deal with heavy rainfall? Where will there be heavy rain next? Xinhua News Agency reporters go deep into the front line to answer your questions.

Multiple early warnings are issued

At 1 am on July 2nd, the night was heavy. The 400-meter-wide Zijiang River seemed calm on the surface, but the current flow was very rapid. A thin body was sitting in the assault boat. While observing the Doppler flow meter on the river, she stared at the flow data displayed on the laptop: the water level was 34.52 meters and the flow was 1,400 m³/second.

She is Cao Wen, a staff member of Taojiang Hydrological Station, Taojiang County, Yiyang City, Hunan Province. Affected by heavy rainfall upstream and flood discharge from reservoirs, the water level of Zijiang has been rising recently. Cao Wen and his colleagues must be on duty 24 hours a day to monitor the water level and flow in a timely manner based on the water level increase, so as to provide scientific and reliable data support for the flood prevention department and the government along the Zijiang River for reasonable dispatch.

A road damage site in Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Hunan Province. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

At 6 o'clock on July 2, the Central Meteorological Observatory issued a yellow rainstorm warning, which was the seventh consecutive day that the Central Meteorological Observatory issued a rainstorm warning. Since June 26, many places in the south have experienced the strongest rainfall since the flood season this year. Heavy rains or heavy rains have occurred in Hunan, Jiangxi, Guizhou, Guangxi and other places. Affected by the cold vortex, the recent rains in parts of the north have not been small, and heavy rains have occurred in parts of Heilongjiang, Henan, Inner Mongolia, and Shandong.

The Daxinganling area of Heilongjiang Province was hit by heavy rains recently. Floods occurred in 7 rivers in the area, and the two hydrological stations had the highest water levels since the station was established in 1972 and 1986. Before the arrival of Hongfeng, all villagers in Fanrong Village, Sanka Township, Huma County were temporarily transferred and resettled. "When the flooding was the worst, some houses could only see the eaves," said Lu Xiufang, a villager in Fanrong Village.

Affected by the recent heavy rainfall, the water level of the inner river in Du Town, Guxian County, Poyang County, Jiangxi Province has risen sharply, and the water level of many dykes exceeds the warning level. Cheng Songfa, a 48-year-old village cadre, had just finished an overnight shift. After a short rest, he rushed to the duty point. "As a party member and cadre, you must be at the forefront at this time." he said.

People first, Party members and cadres move at the news of the "flood"

On the evening of June 30th, with heavy rain, the phone of Jiang Daojie, the cadre of Shuangfu Village, Meicheng Township, Anhua County, Yiyang City, Hunan Province, rang quickly, "My father-in-law was held down by a stone, come and save!"

It turned out that because of a sudden landslide behind the house, 80-year-old He Yuzhang's legs were held down by rocks and mud. His daughter-in-law quickly called for help. Before Jiang Daojie could hold his umbrella, he plunged into the rain and ran to the old man's house while calling and dispatching nearby villagers to help and requesting support from the town.

Meicheng Town Party Secretary Hu Shengyun led the rescue team to the scene quickly, and saw the old man buried below his waist and bleeding in many places on his head. Due to the small rescue space, it is difficult to use machinery, and for fear of causing secondary landslides, rescuers can only dig up the silt with bare hands most of the time.

Everyone united, and within half an hour, the old man was successfully rescued.

Facing the threat of floods, party members and cadres in various places moved when they heard about the "flood". The story of "fighting the flood and protecting the homeland" was constantly staged on the embankment, on the highway, in the deep mountains, and in the homes of residents.

"If it weren't for the early transfer, our losses would be very serious. Thanks to the party members and cadres who charged ahead." said Liu Jiuyun, a villager in Zhuzhen Village, Shanglu Town, Guangxin District, Shangrao City, Jiangxi Province.

At around 1 am on June 28th, patrol officers discovered that there was a risk of landslides next to Zhenzhen Village. The local government quickly evacuated nearly 500 people from more than 150 households door-to-door. "Now we are placed in the hotel in the town and feel at ease." Liu Jiuyun said.　　

A mass transfer site in Zhuzhen Village, Guangxin District, Shangrao City, Jiangxi Province. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee) 

On the river embankment of Huma County, the party members and cadres who participated in the inspection of the embankment are undoubtedly the "brightest stars." When the reporter saw Sun Yonghao, head of the Huma County Fire Rescue Brigade, he and his teammates were carrying sandbags at the piping disposal site. Mosquitoes are densely populated, and even though they wear mosquito shields, they are still bitten by mosquitoes and give out many red packets. Sun Yonghao hurried forward, "These are trivial matters compared to the safety of the masses."

The heavy rain continues. Don’t take it lightly in the later stage

According to the Central Meteorological Observatory’s forecast, the southern main rain belt will still be located in the Yangtze River Basin in the next three days. According to analysis by Wang Weiyue, a meteorological analyst at China Weather, there were heavy rainstorms and local heavy rains in parts of northern Hunan, eastern Hubei, northwestern Jiangxi, southern Anhui, southern Jiangsu, southern Guizhou, and northern Guangxi.

From July 6 to 7, the rain belt will move further north, and there will be heavy rainfall in northwestern Hubei, central and southern Henan, northern Anhui, northern Jiangsu, and southern Shandong. Wang Weiyue reminded that the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River have entered a rainy period, and attention should be paid to the possible floods of small and medium rivers, mountain torrents, geological disasters, urban and rural waterlogging, and severe convective weather.

In the face of the flood situation, the Hunan Provincial Emergency Management Department urgently allocated 10 million yuan in provincial disaster relief funds and allocated 7,300 pieces (sets) of tents, folding beds, towels and quilts to protect the basic lives of the victims. Recently, an average of more than 20,000 people in the province carry out patrol inspections day and night every day, striving to effectively prevent and resolve various hidden dangers as soon as possible.

The emergency management department of Jiangxi Province urgently allocated 4600 pieces (sets) of quilts, folding beds and other living disaster relief materials to the hardest hit counties and regions, and discussed with the Department of finance of Jiangxi Province to allocate 6 million yuan of provincial emergency management special funds to support disaster resistance and relief in the disaster areas.　

At a temporary resettlement site in Laodaodian Village, Sanka Township, Huma County, Heilongjiang Province, medical staff measured blood pressure for the villagers. (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

In the Daxinganling area of Heilongjiang Province, all the villages affected by the flood conditions have restored power supply except for the villages that were seriously wading through the water. The party member service team of the State Grid Daxinganling Power Supply Company conducts network-type hidden danger investigation and emergency repairs from house to house to ensure the safety of villagers' electricity use. In the home of Song Xianfeng, a villager, the service team carefully checked the operation of indoor switches, sockets, lamp holders and other electrical equipment, and used temperature measuring equipment to measure the temperature of the wires. Song Xianfeng said: "With them, we can rest assured."