The Miyun Reservoir in northeastern suburban Beijing on Sunday discharged water downstream after recording its largest inflow since the reservoir was built over six decades ago.
At 03:00 Sunday, the reservoir experienced a record-breaking peak inflow of 6,550 cubic meters per second as heavy rain battered the reservoir's upper catchment area from July 23 to 27, according to the Ministry of Water Resources. By 08:00 the same day, the reservoir's water level had risen to 153.10 meters, exceeding the flood limit by 1.10 meters. Hydrological forecasts suggest the ongoing flood will bring nearly 500 million cubic meters of additional water to the reservoir.
To prepare for possible floods, authorities initiated a controlled discharge from the reservoir starting at 15:00 Sunday. The main affected rivers include the Chaohe, Baihe, and Chaobai rivers, which flow through districts including Miyun, Huairou, Shunyi, and Tongzhou.
"The reservoir's outflow was increased from 200 cubic meters per second at 15:00 to 500 cubic meters per second by 18:00 on Sunday," said Wu Zebin, deputy director of the Research Center on Flood and Drought Disaster Reduction of the Ministry of Water Resources.
With more rainfall of 30 to 40 millimeters expected in the upstream area on Monday, the ministry has issued a strong warning to downstream regions.
Local governments are urged to intensify inspections of river embankments, relocate vulnerable populations in a timely manner, restrict public access to riverbanks, and enforce road closures and traffic control where necessary.
"Some river channels are under construction in the downstream areas. It is necessary to evacuate personnel and machinery in a timely manner and take relevant protective measures," said Wu.
Miyun Reservoir releases water amid record inflow as rain forecast continues
