Storms, strong winds kill 17 people in central China

The death toll from devastating storms in parts of China rose to 17 yesterday, with hundreds more injured and tens of thousands evacuated, state media reported, as President Xi Jinping urged “all out” rescue efforts.

Dramatic video shared by state broadcaster CCTV showed a torrent of muddy water rushing past the crumbled concrete walls of a reservoir dam that had burst in the southern region of Guangxi.

Rescue workers wearing life vests searched for missing people in inflatable boats, state media footage showed, while authorities erected emergency shelters to house those displaced.

Intense rain and severe flooding from Typhoon Maysak killed at least four people in Guangxi, where authorities raised the flood control emergency response to its highest level in the regional capital, Nanning.

At least 50,000 people were evacuated, but eight are still missing.

Videos of villagers knee-deep in floodwater frantically trying to catch snakes swimming in a flooded Guangxi town went viral on social media, with a related hashtag racking up over 180 million views.

Around 800 to 900 snakes escaped on Monday morning after a breeding farm was washed away, Wu Zhi, the head of a local village committee, told state-owned media Red Star News.

Thunderstorms and gale-force winds killed another 11 people and injured 331 in the central province of Hubei, and tornadoes were reported elsewhere late on Monday, state news agency Xinhua said.

One person is missing in Hubei, Xinhua said, adding that 4,800 houses were damaged and 22 more had collapsed.

A man surnamed Wang told local media that his brother-in-law, surnamed Zhang, had been “sucked out” of his home in Hubei’s Huanggang city by the strong winds, and was found unconscious outside his apartment complex, breathing only faintly.

“Wall cabinets, sofas, coffee tables, dining tables, and chairs vanished in an instant. It was as if the entire building had been hollowed out,” Wang told the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald.

Xi said yesterday that rescuers should “go all out” in organising emergency operations, CCTV reported.