Affected by typhoons, rivers in several Chinese provinces have risen above warning levels. Guangxi is once again facing a severe test.
At 3 a.m. on August 26, the Chongzuo hydrological station on the Zuojiang River in Jiangzhou District, Chongzuo City, recorded a peak flood level of 108.87 meters - 7.67 meters above the warning line - with a corresponding flow of 11,200 cubic meters per second. It was the largest flood on the Zuojiang since instrumental records began in 1955.
After daybreak, reporters standing on the Zuojiang Bridge in Jiangzhou District watched muddy yellow water carrying branches, planks and debris push slowly eastward. The river surface was far wider than usual; the once clearly visible banks, riverside walkways, waterfront platforms and a number of nearby houses had disappeared beneath the water. On the bridge, citizens leaned silently against the railings and gazed out.
A resident surnamed Lan stood at the middle of the bridge, his eyes fixed on the distance. "First time in my life I've seen water this big. Even the flood of 2008 wasn't this bad." Many of Lan's relatives and friends grow sugarcane, and he himself owns a fish pond of several dozen mu. Chongzou enjoys the reputation of being China's "sugar capital," and sugarcane is its pillar industry - this is precisely the season when the cane stalks are shooting up. "This year's cane grew well, two or three meters tall. Now it's all under water," he said.
