Weaker Doksuri soaks north China, Beijing evacuates thousands

BEIJING, July 29 (Reuters) – Rain lashed north China on Saturday as Doksuri, one of the strongest storms to hit the country in years, prompted the evacuation of thousands of people in Beijing after hitting the Philippines and Taiwan, and hitting the coast of China.

A wide area encompassing the capital faces a medium to high risk of storm disasters in the next three days, China’s national meteorologist said. Thunderstorms in the capital are forecast to peak on Saturday.

As the storm moves inland, cumulative rainfall of 4 inches (100 mm) or more was forecast over 85,000 square miles (220,000 km), which could affect 130 million people.

“Doksuri’s intensity continues to weaken, but the impact is far from over,” the China Meteorological Administration said, warning the public to be vigilant and avoid high-risk areas in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, where heavy rains localized could reach 600 mm (two feet).

Over the weekend, small and medium-sized rivers in southern Beijing, central and western areas of Hebei, eastern Shanxi and northern Henan could rise above warning levels, while flash floods could occur. and geological hazards around mountainous areas.

Beijing authorities have suspended sporting events, while several tourist spots and parks have been closed. The city’s flood control department said it had mobilized 203,230 rescue personnel and 3,031 people were evacuated, local media reported.

Doksuri is the most powerful typhoon to hit China this year and the second strongest to hit the southeastern province of Fujian since Typhoon Meranti in 2016. It forced the closure of schools and businesses and the evacuation of workers from oil and gas fields in high seas, the state said. the media said.

Since such records began in 1951, only a dozen other typhoons have hit or passed Beijing, and one in 1956 had the biggest impact, dumping 10 inches (249 mm) of rain on a weather station.

Moving northwest and further inland, the storm weakened to a tropical depression in Anhui province on Saturday morning with winds of 20 miles per hour (30 kph), but as wind speeds As it continued to decrease, the center of Doksuri became more difficult to determine.

The central province of Henan and Shandong in the east will experience heavy rain, the meteorologist said, warning of mountain torrents, geological disasters and waterlogging.

Doksuri done landfall on Friday, downing power lines and uprooting trees, affecting some 880,000 people on Fujian’s coast with more than 354,400 people evacuated and resettled, and causing more than 478 million yuan ($67 million) in direct economic losses, reported the state media.

In the aftermath of Doksuri, social media posts showed emergency workers clearing downed trees and landslides, and people walking in thigh-deep floodwater.

Other reported damage in Fujian province included a billboard torn from a hotel building by winds in the city of Putian, a large tree that fell on a man who was later rescued, and a garment factory in the port city of Quanzhou. that caught fire

Provincial media reported on rescue efforts after the storm, of elderly people trapped in their home and a pregnant woman, who was taken to hospital on a stretcher in knee-deep water.

Later that day, the cities were beginning to recover.

Fuzhou, which suspended subway services on Saturday morning due to flooded subway stations, resumed operations in the afternoon. The city, along with neighboring cities Putian and Xianyou, reported the highest daily rainfall since 1961.

Before reaching China, Doksuri roared through Taiwan and the northern Philippines, where rain and strong winds caused a ferry to capsize, killing at least 25 people.

($1 = 7.1488 Chinese yuan renminbi)

Reporting by Liz Lee, Jenny Wang, and Ryan Woo; Edited by William Mallard and Lincoln Feast.

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