Rescuers search for missing after flash floods hit Shandong

Rescue workers are continuing the search for missing people after heavy rainfall caused flash floods in Laiwu district of Jinan, Shandong province, in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Some 550 firefighters and police are working to locate missing individuals, while evacuating 290 affected residents to safety, China Central Television reported on Wednesday.

As of Wednesday morning, communication networks in the disaster-stricken area have been largely restored. Supplies including tents, food, drinking water and medicine have been deployed to the affected population.

Preliminary reports from the local authorities indicate that the flash floods ravaged and damaged 19 houses, resulting in the loss of two lives and leaving 10 missing.

From midnight to 5 am on Tuesday, Laiwu district in Jinan was deluged by 364 millimeters of rainfall. This extreme weather event led to flash floods in the vicinity of Shiwuzi village and Zhujiayu village in Dawangzhuang town.