China flooding: People missing, bridges collapse

Beijing [China], June 25: Days of heavy rainfall have led to severe flooding in China, triggering damage and reports of missing people.
In the south-western province of Guizhou, a highway bridge in Sandu County collapsed following a landslide, state media reported. Footage from the accident site showed a lorry with its front part hanging precariously over the abyss, narrowly avoiding a fall. The driver was reported unharmed.
In the vicinity of the accident site, rivers burst their banks. Videos circulating online showed brown floodwaters gushing through a shopping centre in Rongjiang County. Chinese state television called it the area's worst flooding in 30 years. Rescue workers in the north-western province of Gansu were searching for five missing people in Jingyuan County, state media reported.
Flash floods had taken people by surprise and left a trail of destruction. Meteorologists have predicted more rain in the coming days in western, central and eastern China. While the south is struggling with an excess of water, many people in the north are suffering from extreme heat. In and around Beijing, as well as parts of north-eastern and western China, temperatures reached highs of up to 39 degrees Celsius, according to the weather authority. (DPA)
Source: Qatar Tribune