Beijing's floodwaters hit Tianjin

Floodwaters that had been diverted upstream in Beijing and Hebei province in the wake of heavy rains brought by Typhoon Doksuri since Saturday, arrived in Tianjin on Tuesday evening.

The water came a little sooner than had been forecast, according to news portal Jinyun. A little after 10pm on Tuesday, floodwaters from the Yongding River entered the Shaoqi Dike area in Tianjin's Wuqing district, with a real-time water level of 9.32 meters and a flow of 66.6 cubic meters per second.

The increased discharge in the upper reaches of the Yongding, Daqing and Ziya rivers sped up, and the river water level in Tianjin gradually rose.

Three main sources of flooding upstream in Tianjin are discharging growing amounts of floods, lifting water levels in the city's rivers, the city's emergency management department said.

According to the latest hydrological predictions, floodwater from two of the sources is expected to reach Tianjin around Sunday and Monday.

The Ministry of Emergency Management has allocated cotton mattresses and towels to Tianjin. The municipal water department has conducted inspections on dikes, constructing temporary embankments and laying drainage pipes at weak sections of the dikes. About 10,000 life jackets have been provided for emergency work.

Roads were closed and access to a village was restricted as part of efforts to combat the flood situation in Pangzui village in the city's Beichen district.

The flood defenses were reinforced and heightened. Prioritizing the safety of residents, a thorough inspection was conducted to ensure that no one remained in the village.

Li Ning, an official from the district said: "Since Tuesday night, we have begun searching the village for villagers who had not been relocated. Fortunately, by 4 am Wednesday, all the villagers and rescuers have been placed in safety."

"Livestock were also properly relocated, with some villagers saying they understood the flooding situation and would not return to danger for the livestock," Li said.

The Tianjin Water Affairs Department took a series of measures to ensure the safety of the embankment, including inspection along vulnerable spots around the area.

Li Hongyang contributed to this story.