At Least 18 Dead, 2 Lakh Displaced As Unprecedented Rainfall, Massive Floods Ravage Central China

At least 18 people have died and over 2 lakh have been displaced due to the unprecedented rainfall and floods in Central China.

A total of 16 large and medium-sized reservoirs have seen water levels rise above the alert level after torrential rains battered most parts of the Central China's Hennan province on Monday and Tuesday, reports Xinhua, the Chinese state-owned news agency.

The massive floods due to the torrential rains, described by meteorologists as a once-in-a-lifetime event, has ravaged Henan's capital Zhengzhou, a metropolis of 12.6 million, with its public avenues and subway tunnels getting submerged with surging waters.

The downtown area of Zhengzhou received an average precipitation of 457.5 mm within 24 hours on Tuesday, the highest daily rainfall since the weather record began.

Hongkong-based South China Morning Post reported that an estimated 200,000 people have been displaced and at least 18 people have died due to the floods.

Weather forecasters described the extreme event as the heaviest rainfall in 1,000 years while hospitals have run out of electricity, the SCMP reported.

Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that the rainfall has made the flood control situation very severe, causing severe waterlogging in Zhengzhou and other cities, water levels in some rivers exceeding alarm levels, and damages to dams of some reservoirs. He added that the sections of railways have also been shut down, and some flights have been canceled.