Tropical Storm Gaemi Causes Landslide and Floods, Killing 12 in China

Continued heavy rainfall from Tropical Storm Gaemi has triggered a landslide that killed 12 people in southern China and caused flash floods and railway disruptions elsewhere, state media reported on Sunday. The cyclonic winds from Gaemi, which has been downgraded from a typhoon, had mostly dissipated by Sunday. However, many parts of China remain under alert for flooding risks due to earlier rains. Forecasters warned that remnants of Gaemi’s vast cloud banks could still dump rain on already waterlogged cities.

The landslide near Hengyang city in Hunan province occurred on Sunday morning, trapping 18 people. State broadcaster CCTV reported that six injured survivors were rescued. Hunan provincial authorities issued a flood warning as heavy rains continued through Sunday.

In Jilin province, bordering North Korea, two officials, including the deputy mayor of Linjiang city, went missing during flood rescue efforts. More than 27,000 people in northeast China were evacuated, and hundreds of factories suspended operations as the storm’s aftermath continued to wreak havoc.

The most powerful storm to hit China this year initially lashed towns on the coastal Fujian province on Friday with heavy rains and strong winds before moving into the populous interior. Jilin province issued upgraded warnings for heavy rains and flash floods on Sunday morning, prompting Linjiang authorities to shut schools, factories, and businesses and warn that “major flood disasters may occur.”

Rail services were suspended in southern China’s Guangdong province and Hainan island, while some passenger rail lines resumed in the southern provinces of Fujian and Jiangxi as the storm moved north.

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

As China continues to grapple with the aftermath of Tropical Storm Gaemi, the focus remains on rescue operations and mitigating further damage from ongoing heavy rains.

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