The death toll in the latest floods in the Chinese capital has risen to 33 people, five of whom were rescue workers. A further 18 people are missing, officials announced on Wednesday.
Several days of intense rain have hit the city’s mountainous western outskirts particularly hard. 59,000 homes have collapsed and nearly 150,000 homes have been damaged. 15,000 hectares of farmland have been flooded, according to local authorities.
Given the scale, it could take up to three years to repair the damage, Xia Linmao, Beijing’s vice mayor, told a news conference on Wednesday.
Other parts of China have also been hit by heavy flooding, partly due to the advance of Typhoon Doksuri over the weekend, which has led to around 10 deaths. Hebei province just outside Beijing has been hit by some of the region’s worst floods on record.
At the same time, other areas of China are experiencing heat waves and drought, which risks leading to a failed autumn harvest.