A tornado ripped through Guangzhou, southern China’s economic hub, on Saturday, killing five people and damaging dozens of factories.
A tornado hit Baiyun District in the city’s northern suburbs around 3 p.m., injuring another 33 people. local government said. It lasted about four minutes. Hail also fell in parts of the city, some about 2 inches in diameter.
Video shared by Chinese state media shows transmission towers and power lines ignite Debris swirled through the air, with a giant funnel in the background darkening the afternoon sky.
Guangzhou, a sprawling city of 19 million people and a manufacturing and technology hub, has been hit by torrential spring rains this month. flood Last week, tens of thousands of people were evacuated across Guangdong province, of which Guangzhou is the capital.
The Guangzhou municipal government said warm, moist air from the South China Sea caused a “large amount of unstable energy” to accumulate near the ground.
Authorities said a total of 141 factory buildings were damaged by the tornado and recent rains. Wind speeds peaked at 46 miles per hour.
State media said the search and rescue efforts ended late Saturday. But officials warned that heavy rain, high winds and lightning could continue to hit Guangzhou in the coming days as China prepares for a five-day Labor Day holiday starting on Wednesday.
one video Information shared by the Guangzhou Municipal Government reminds residents not to go out during heavy hailstorms and to wear helmets if necessary.
The brown Pearl River flows through central Guangzhou, much of which is low-lying and subject to chronic flooding.
Over the past few decades, the city has taken extensive steps to improve its resilience to the floods that have long accompanied the annual late spring rains.
In recent years, municipal regulations have required that new apartment buildings must have shops on the ground floor, rather than apartments. The goal is to minimize the risk to human life during flooding.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen visited Guangzhou earlier this month during an official visit to China. The city recently hosted the Canton Fair, a major trade show.
Keith Bradsher contribution reporting, and Zhang Jian Amy Contributions to research
