Following intense rains these days, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in the south downgraded its flooding warning while Shanxi Province in the north is facing the Fenhe River's largest flood this year.
In Guangxi, the regional hydrological center downgraded its flood warning from orange to blue on Sunday. By 14:00, the water level of the Yujiang River at the Nanning hydrological station had receded to 72.52 meters, 0.48 meters below the alert threshold.
The flood conditions in the autonomous region have improved since Oct 8 when 20 monitoring stations of 13 rivers, including the Zuojiang, Youjiang and Yujiang rivers, saw water levels exceeding warning marks by 0.19 to 5.11 meters, and the regional hydrological center upgraded the flood warning to orange that morning.
China has a four-tier emergency response system, with Level I being the most severe response, and a four-tier color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe warning, followed by orange, yellow and blue.
But nine monitoring stations of eight rivers in Guangxi, including the Zuojiang River, Yujiang River and its tributary Wusi River, still reported water levels 0.04 to 3.13 meters above alert thresholds on Sunday.
In the north, driven by heavy rains, Shanxi is facing a growing flood threat along the Fenhe River, the second-largest tributary of the Yellow River.
Some sections of the river's main stream saw the volume approaching to the warning flow levels, with mid- and downstream sections about to experience their largest flood of 2025.
At 10:00 on Sunday, the water level at the Zhaocheng hydrological station in Hongtong County, Linfen City in the middle and lower reaches of the Fenhe River surpassed the warning threshold. The Shanxi Provincial Hydrological and Water Resources Survey Center then issued a yellow-coded flood warning for the Linfen section of the river.
By noon, the maximum volume at the section reached 738 cubic meters per second, approximately 10 times the river's typical daily average, marking the most severe flood in the area this year.
Local authorities have made preparations in advance and taken stringent flood control measures.
"We have intensified patrols to mitigate hazard at key areas, with real-time monitoring of the Fenhe River flow variation. We have prepared flood control goods in advance to ensure sufficient supplies and resources at critical locations. So far the flood in the Linfen section of the Fenhe River is passing through steadily," said Li Huiping, inspector with Linfen Municipal Water Resources Bureau.
As of 13:00 on Sunday, the volume at the Zhaocheng Hydrological Station dropped to 721 cubic meters per second.
Guangxi downgrades flood alert, Shanxi warns of rising flood risk
