Heavy Rains Evacuate 4,400, Kill 4 in Beijing, Hebei Floods

Heavy rains have severely impacted Beijing and surrounding northern Chinese provinces, causing flash floods, landslides, and widespread evacuations. Authorities have relocated over 4,400 people from disaster-prone areas, particularly in the suburban Miyun district, where flooding submerged homes, vehicles, and parts of residential buildings, and power outages affected more than 10,000 residents. The torrential rainfall, intensified by the East Asian monsoon and linked to climate change, has led to record water flows into the Miyun reservoir and forced closures of risky road sections in Beijing's Pinggu District. Neighboring provinces such as Shanxi and Shaanxi have also experienced flooding, crop and vegetation damage, and issued flash flood warnings, with fatalities and missing persons reported. In response, China's National Development and Reform Commission allocated 50 million yuan to repair infrastructure and support recovery efforts in affected regions. The ongoing extreme weather highlights the challenges posed by increased precipitation in northern China, an area traditionally prone to dryness.