Floods in south China's Guangxi leave 39 dead, 9 missing

Floods triggered by torrential rains have left 39 people dead and nine reportedly missing in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local authorities said on Thursday, July 9.

The death toll includes casualties resulting from a severe reservoir breach in the regional capital city of Nanning, according to a flood control and disaster relief press conference held at noon on Thursday.

However, officials said the death toll and the number of missing people may overlap, as technical identification of some victims is still ongoing.

Following further verification, the Liulan Reservoir breach in Nanning has been confirmed to have caused 26 deaths, including five unidentified victims, while seven people remain missing, Nanning Vice Mayor Ding Wei said.

As of 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, Nanning had evacuated and resettled a total of 64,500 residents to safer places. Meanwhile, the city has delivered 100,000 essential items, including clothing, drinking water, food, medicine, and power banks, to affected residents.

More than 4,200 people have been mobilized for cleanup efforts, while over 300 specialists have been dispatched to conduct environmental monitoring and disinfection. According to the press conference, no disease outbreaks or public health emergencies have been reported so far.

Regarding infrastructure recovery, communication base stations in Hengzhou City and Binyang County, both under Nanning's administration, are now operating at 87.7% of regular capacity. Power has been restored to 63,000 households in the two areas, while traffic flow has resumed across several highway sections and major roads.

Nanning will continue its search and rescue operations for missing persons, enhance resettlement services for affected residents, and advance post-disaster reconstruction, the press conference noted.