Many hydrological stations in eastern, central and southern Chinese provinces reported risky water levels on Tuesday following heavy rainfall, and local departments have taken quick actions to best cope with the floods.
A total of 84 towns and villages in Liuzhou City of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have been hit by heavy or extremely heavy rains since Monday. The Liujiang River exceeded the warning water level on Tuesday, according to the Liuzhou hydrological station.
Many streets along the river in Liuzhou were flooded, and some people along the river were trapped in their homes. The Liuzhou Water Rescue Center organized a team of volunteers to search for trapped people on speedboats and rubber boats, and then transfer them in batches. By 16:00 Tuesday, the rescue team had safely transferred 45 trapped people.
The peak water level of the Guijiang River in Zhaoping, Guangxi reached 59.58 meters, or 1.58 meters above the warning level. Relevant departments coordinated and set up cordons and guardrails along the river to prevent pedestrians from approaching the water. At the same time, they deployed defenses in advance by piling up flood control gravel, making every effort to cope with the flood.
On the same day, the Xijiang River experienced the second flood of 2024. It is expected that the Wuzhou hydrological station in Guangxi downstream will see a peak flow of about 41,000 cubic meters per second around midnight on June 21, with a peak water level of 24.00 meters, or 5.50 meters above the warning level. So far, since the beginning of the flood season this year, the Pearl River Basin has experienced nine numbered floods, the highest number since the statistics of numbered floods began in 1998.
Heavy rainfall also hit Wuyishan City, east China's Fujian Province. In Wuyishan Resort Area, many road sections were flooded, and some vehicles that failed to leave in time were submerged by the flood. The local authorities quickly organized manpower to carry out emergency rescue work and clean up the silt and water on the road. At present, the flooded roads have been restored to traffic, and the scenic area is still closed.
The peak of a flood in the Xiangjiang River on Tuesday passed through Yongzhou City, central China’s Hunan Province. In Yongzhou’s Baishui Town, the flood overflowed to the streets along the river, and the local authorities immediately organized more than 40 villagers to evacuate. At present, Baishui Town has urgently evacuated 806 people, and the water level is slowly receding.
The water storage in some reservoirs in Taizhou, east China's Zhejiang Province has exceeded the flood limit due to heavy rainfall. The largest reservoir in Xianju, Taizhou opened the gates to release water from 10:00 Tuesday to reduce the water storage pressure and ensure the safety of the reservoir during the flood season.
Government departments take quick responses in China's flood-hit areas
The ongoing 2024 Summer Davos, which opened in northeast China's coastal city of Dalian on Tuesday, released the Top 10 Emerging Technologies report, featuring technologies with the greatest potential to positively impact the world over the next three to five years.
According to Frederick Fenter, chief executive editor of Frontiers, the report's co-publisher, the 10 technologies were selected from a group of 70 candidate technologies, applying criteria including novelty, applicability, depth, and power.
Artificial intelligence-powered scientific discovery, high-altitude platform stations, and genomics for transplants are among the 10 listed technologies that focus on applications in health, communication, infrastructure, and sustainability.
The report also provided an overview of integrated sensing and communication and the advent of 6G networks, which facilitate simultaneous data collection and transmission. The technology enables environmental monitoring systems that help in smart agriculture, environmental conservation, and urban planning.
China's scientific and technological innovations have been supporting and driving world economic growth by promoting international cooperation, said the attendees of the event.
Attendees praised the ongoing emergence of innovative technologies in China, highlighting these advancements as significant opportunities for global economic development.
"I think technological innovation is certainly going to be a source of growth going forward. And China is very much at the forefront of that, so when I come to China, and I live in the West, I see a country that's really sort of embracing the future and embracing the technologies of the future," said one of the attendees.
"Green innovation is being a really core area to help drive or propel sort of new economic forces. China, how to engage with China, how to continue to build businesses and thrive in this market is a top CEO agenda item," said another attendee.
Other attendees noted that the "next frontiers" reflected in the event's theme "Next Frontiers for Growth," represent the direction of world economic development. At the same time, science and technology innovation is the inevitable path to developing these frontiers.
"As China develops new quality productive forces, we will leverage new technologies to transform and upgrade traditional industries. The cultivation and growth of emerging industries will create a vast market demand, which will, in turn, bring about significant needs for the products, technologies, and services for multinational corporations," said Huang Hanquan, an attendee and head of the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomic Research affiliated to the National Development and Reform Commission.
"Through technological innovation, China boasts various application scenarios for new technologies. We will expand China's manufacturing advantages to the world, transform from solely exporting products to exporting industrial capabilities, and promote China's manufacturing advantages to create greater value globally," said Li Dongsheng, an attendee and chairman and CEO of TCL, a leading TV brand in China.
The three-day event, formally known as the World Economic Forum's 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, is gathering some 1,600 leading figures from the public and private sectors across nearly 80 countries and regions to jointly explore new drivers and pathways for global economic growth.
Summer Davos reveals top 10 emerging technologies set to have global impact
