The city of Guigang in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region has mounted a large-scale rescue operation to relocate teachers, students and residents after floods engulfed an education park and surrounding neighborhoods in recent days.
The flooding, brought on by torrential rain that began Monday under the shadow of Typhoon Maysak, inundated parts of the education park, leaving several schools severely affected. Relief efforts were stepped up over the past two days, and as of Thursday, 12,000 teachers, students and nearby residents had been relocated.
Relief workers have been working around the clock to resettle residents in flood-hit urban areas, with Guigang setting up 24 emergency shelters across the city.
At one shelter, staff members were split into three teams. One collected emergency supplies from distribution points, another used boats to deliver food and drinking water to residents stranded in flooded homes, and a third remained at the shelter to distribute supplies and respond to evacuees' needs.
Residents at the shelter expressed appreciation for the support they received.
"I am very grateful to them. They are always at the forefront. They have done a very thorough job and they have been very considerate. This is what we all deeply felt," said Yang Haibo, a resident at the shelter.
Meanwhile, shelter staff emphasized the urgency of meeting evacuees' basic needs.
"We must ensure timely provision of food and drinking water. I don't want to mention any hard work in the face of such a major disaster. We will do as much as we can. I mean people have come from other places to support us. We are all exerting efforts to get through this disaster as soon as possible," said Ma Qing, a staff member at the shelter.
Relief efforts intensify as floods hit south China’s Guigang
