Beijing evacuates thousands as Doksuri pummels northern China
Al JazeeraAug 04, 2023
The Facts
Remnants of Typhoon Doksuri made landfall in China, bringing torrential rain triggering landslides, and flooding to parts of northern provinces. Heavy rains caused the worst flooding in Beijing for a decade, which swept away cars, destroyed roads, and knocked out power.
The downpours claimed dozens of lives and triggered the evacuation of more than 52K per official state media.
The Spin
Narrative A
Climate change has exacerbated the severity of extreme weather in China. Typhoon Doksuri, which is considered one of the most formidable storms to strike the PRC in recent years, came after record heat waves in the country's northern provinces this summer. And more is on its way, forecasters have warned that a second storm — Typhoon Khanun — will hit China later this week. This rising superpower is on the front lines of a climate crisis.
Narrative B
China's central government simply has not done enough to combat climate change. Currently, the PRC's climate adaptation policy focuses at the provincial level. City and community-level policy hasn't caught up yet. In 2035, a more comprehensive National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy will be in place but, until then, there are major gaps in the system.
