Heavy rains trigger chaos in Hunan

Heavy rains have battered parts of central China's Hunan Province starting Saturday night, causing waterlogging and damaging roads in some areas and triggering emergency response from local authorities.

Suining County in the province experienced heavy rains, with an average precipitation of 69.2 mm and a maximum of 187.1 mm. This has led to landslides and road damages in several areas. Local transportation department immediately dispatched emergency repair teams to the affected road sections.

They deployed large machines to clear the collapsed rocks and muds from landslides and repaired the damaged roads, while trying to ensure the smooth operation of transfer routes. According to statistics from the local emergency department, the rains have impacted over 13,000 people across seven towns in the county, with some farmland flooded. Shaoyang City experienced torrential rains with an average precipitation of 40.6 mm and a maximum of 174 mm. The heavy rains triggered a landslide at the entrance of a tunnel. Local authorities immediately activated an emergency response, sending vehicles and personnel to the site to clear the road. After more than three hours of efforts, the road resumed traffic.

Xinhua County also suffered heavy rains with accumulated precipitation of 124.7 mm. Many low-lying roads in the county have become severely waterlogged. The heavy rains have also caused serious waterlogging at a local high school, which serves as a college entrance exam site. Local urban management staff rushed to clear the debris and silt from the drainage.

"To ensure the smooth travel for the examinees, we have deployed more people and machines. After a full night of hard work, we guaranteed the route for examinees to be clean, tidy and smooth," said Sun Zhen, a local official.