Heavy rains fell today over the central Chinese province of Henan, causing major rivers to overflow their banks and flooding streets in dozens of cities. The famous Shaolin Temple was closed, Reuters reported.
Since the weekend, during this unusually active rainy season, Henan – a Chinese province with twice the size of Austria – has been hit by storms.
No casualties were reported. However, the daily lives of the 94 million locals are hampered by traffic disruptions. In the province, which is a major logistics hub, rail services have been suspended, many major roads have been closed and flights have been delayed or canceled.
In Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan, the Yellow River (Yellow River) overflowed, with people wading in water to their knees to cross flooded intersections, state television reported.
In the city of Zhuzhou, southwest of Zhengzhou, the streets turned into violent streams, carrying cars and other vehicles, can be seen on videos on social networks.
The I River, whose level has risen, threatens to flood the Lunman Caves, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Buddhist statues were carved a millennium ago in limestone rocks near the city of Luoyang.
Like the Lunman Caves, the Shaolin Temple in Dunfeng, known in the West for its martial arts, is temporarily closed.
Also in Dunfeng, an aluminum alloy plant exploded today as water from an overflowing river entered an industrial site.
The water level in at least 31 large and medium-sized reservoirs in the province is above the critical level.
As of Saturday, 3,535 meteorological stations in Henan have reported rainfall of more than 50 millimeters, with the water column exceeding 250 millimeters in 151 locations.
The most rain fell in the city of Lushan – 498 millimeters – according to the meteorological service in the province.
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