Heavy Rain Hits Flood-Stricken Rongjiang Guizhou Second Time

China's southwestern Guizhou province has been struck by heavy rains twice in one week, severely flooding the riverside city of Rongjiang, which is home to 300,000 residents and located at the confluence of three rivers. Earlier flooding caused six deaths and displaced over 80,000 people, with rainfall over 72 hours doubling the city's June average. The recent rains led authorities to raise the flood emergency response to the highest level and evacuate more than 40,000 residents as water levels exceeded safety thresholds. The floods have devastated local economies, including wiping out a tourism boom in Rongjiang driven by a viral local soccer league known as the "Village Super League," with the soccer pitch submerged under seven meters of water. Chinese officials attribute the extreme flooding to climate change, warning that such heavy and frequent rains may trigger rare but catastrophic events like dam collapses. Additionally, 13 major rivers across southern provinces including Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi, and Hainan have risen above warning levels amid ongoing storms.