People move through flood water after a heavy downpour in Zhengzhou city, central China's Henan province on Tuesday, July 20, 2021. Heavy flooding has hit central China following unusually heavy rains, with the subway system in the city of Zhengzhou inundated with rushing water and thousands of residents having to be relocated.
China Flood Latest News: China’s military has blasted a dam to release floodwaters threatening one of its most heavily populated provinces.
The operation late Tuesday night in the city of Luoyang came after at least 12 people died in severe flooding in the Henan provincial capital of Zhengzhou, where residents were trapped in the subway system and left stranded at schools, apartments and offices.
Transport and working life have been disrupted throughout the province, with torrents of rain turning streets into rapidly flowing rivers, washing away cars and rising into people’s homes.
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, vehicles pass through floodwaters in Zhengzhou in central China's Henan Province on Tuesday, July 20, 2021. At least a dozen people died in severe flooding Tuesday in a Chinese provincial capital that trapped people in subways and schools, washed away vehicles and stranded people in their workplaces overnight.
More than 100,000 people have been evacuated to safety. Henan province is home to many cultural sites and a major base for industry and agriculture.
State media on Wednesday showed waters at waist height, with rain still coming down.
Vehicles are stranded after a heavy downpour in Zhengzhou city, central China's Henan province on Tuesday, July 20, 2021. Heavy flooding has hit central China following unusually heavy rains, with the subway system in the city of Zhengzhou inundated with rushing water.
Heavy downpour in Zhengzhou city, central China's Henan province on Tuesday, July 20, 2021. Heavy flooding has hit central China following unusually heavy rains, with the subway system in the city of Zhengzhou inundated with rushing water.
To the north of Zhengzhou, the famed Shaolin Temple, known for its Buddhist monks’ mastery of martial arts, was also badly hit.
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, staff members set up warning signs with the words "Danger!" at a waterlogged area in Wuzhi County in central China's Henan Province on Tuesday, July 20, 2021. At least a dozen people died in severe flooding Tuesday in a Chinese provincial capital that trapped people in subways and schools, washed away vehicles and stranded people in their workplaces overnight.
China experiences regular flooding during the summer, but the growth of cities and conversion of farmland into subdivisions has raised the impact of such events.
READ MORE: 12 killed as flooding in Central China turns streets to rivers
