Severe flooding kills at least 20 people in northern China

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A typhoon brought nearly 30 inches of rain to northern China. Associated Press/Photo by Andy Wong

Severe flooding kills at least 20 people in northern China

The flooding is primarily in Beijing and the surrounding Hebei province. Rescue workers evacuated nearly 850,000 people, according to local authorities. At least 27 people remained missing on Wednesday. The heavy rain began Saturday when Typhoon Doksuri made landfall. Earlier, the typhoon killed over thirty people in the Philippines. Another typhoon is projected to hit China later this week after it lashed Japan Wednesday.

Is this normal? About 15 people died in flooding in southwestern China’s Chongqing city last month. More than 300 died in flooding in Central China last summer. However, extreme flooding is not common around Beijing. Officials in the area recorded at least 29 inches of rain between Saturday and Wednesday, the heaviest rainfall in at least 140 years.

Dig deeper: Read June Cheng’s article about a Chinese food shortage in WORLD Magazine.

Johanna Huebscher

Johanna Huebscher is a student at Bob Jones University and a graduate of the World Journalism Institute.

Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.