'Once-in-50-Years' Flood: Deadly Deluge Hits Southwest China, Leaving Six Dead

Catastrophic Flooding in Guizhou Triggers Mass Evacuations

On 25 June, unprecedented flooding engulfed large parts of southwestern China, leaving at least six people dead and over 80,000 displaced as torrential rains battered Guizhou and neighbouring provinces.

The worst-hit area was Rongjiang County, where three rivers converge. Chinese meteorologists classified the flooding as a ‘once-in-50-year event,’ after water levels in the Liu River surged to more than 80 times the usual flow rate. Entire roads and buildings were submerged, forcing mass evacuations and emergency rescue operations.

By Thursday, floodwaters submerged a lot of Rongjiang’s city centre and neighbouring Congjiang County, leaving thick layers of silt and widespread structural damage. While residents have begun returning to clean up their homes and businesses, many areas remain without power, clean water, or phone access.

Brave Rescue of 8-Year-Old Amid Rising Waters

Amid the devastation, one story captured national attention. On 24 June, rescuers saved an 8-year-old girl who had spent more than seven hours trapped in a storm drain filled with fast-moving water and complete darkness.

The girl had fallen into a sewage pipe while trying to retrieve her shoe during flash floods in Guizhou. Rescuers said she held onto a bar 10 metres (32 feet) underground, surviving the ordeal without major injuries.

Tropical Storm Adds to Misery

Even as the region began clean-up efforts, a tropical depression made landfall in Hainan Province on June 26, with forecasters warning it could strike Guangxi and Guangdong next. This follows Typhoon Wutip, which battered southern China earlier this month, worsening already soaked soil and raising fears of further floods, landslides, and dam overflows.

Local officials have issued Level-III emergency alerts, while 20 rivers in southern China have now risen above danger levels.

Rescue teams remain on standby as residents in Yunnan, Sichuan, Guangxi, and Hunan brace for possible secondary disasters.

Infrastructure Collapses and Widespread Damage

Much of the affected region’s infrastructure collapsed under the pressure of flooding. In some areas, roads washed away, bridges failed, and communication networks went down. A football field in Rongjiang was reported to be buried under three metres of water, and residents had to be rescued from upper floors of buildings.

A viral video showing a truck hanging off a bridge in China’s Guizhou province on June 24 further showed the extent of damage.

Temporary shelters have been set up, while China’s central government has declared 300 million yuan (USD 41 million) in emergency funding for disaster relief.

A Grim Reminder of Climate Extremes

Experts have pointed out that rural regions like Guizhou remain especially vulnerable due to limited infrastructure and resources. The latest disaster goes to show how China’s southern provinces are being hit hard by increasingly frequent and intense weather events, with record heat in the north and devastating floods in the south all within the same week.

As communities begin the long road to recovery, authorities continue rescue, reconstruction, and disease prevention efforts—with more storms looming on the horizon.

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@cgtneurope

Relentless heavy #rainfall and surging upstream inflows have triggered devastating #floods in two counties of southwest China’s #Guizhou Province, with over 80,000 people evacuated and relocated. #ChinaFlood

♬ 原声 – CGTN Europe – CGTN Europe

@themalaymail

More than 80,000 people have had to flee their homes due to severe flooding in China’s south-western province of Guizhou, Beijing’s state media said on Wednesday. Rescue teams have been deployed to the two affected counties, where the flood control emergency response has been raised to the highest level, state news agency Xinhua reported. In one affected county, Rongjiang, a football field was “submerged under three meters of water”, the news agency said. One resident Long Tian told Xinhua “the water rose very quickly”.

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