“It rarely rains in Beijing.”

If you told someone that this past week they would have scoffed and looked at you as if you’d lost the plot. With all this precipitation, it seems like the perfect moment to brush up on various safety tips in the likely event that the city continues to experience heavy rains throughout the summer.

When out and about:

• Do not walk or bike through flowing water. Flowing water that’s over six inches deep is enough to make you lose your footing.
• Do not drive through a flooded area. More people drown in cars than anywhere else. Don’t drive around road barriers as the road or bridge may be washed out, (remind the shifu about that when they think it’s a smart move).
• Stay away from power lines and electrical wires as electrocution might occur.

Staying safe at home or in the office:

In the event that your electricity should go out, check if you have space in your freezer then fill plastic containers with up to 90 percent of water. This will act as a coolant and keep the food cold.

• Staying in touch: back up your computer regularly and consider investing in extra batteries for laptops, or a DC converter which allows most laptops to use the cigarette lighter in a car. Keep all mobile devices charged and have an extra phone that stays fully charged and kept somewhere safe and easily accessible.
• Protect your electronics: use a surge protector for all appliances to protect them from shorting out.
• Just in case: Have flashlights, spare batteries, bottled water, a power bank fully charged, food supply that doesn’t require cooking, and a first aid kit.
• Get familiar with your surroundings: know where your electric service panel is located. In most apartment buildings this will be along the hallways. Check to make sure there isn’t a leak near that area; if there is one, call the management office immediately to get that area looked at.

After the rains have receded:

• Clean and disinfect everything that got wet. Floodwaters pick up sewage and chemicals from roads, farms, factories and storage buildings. Spoiled food, flooded cosmetics, and medicines are all health hazards. When in doubt, throw them out.
• Soaked carpeting and padding should be pulled up and discarded.
• Look before you step. After a flood, the ground and floors are covered with debris including broken bottles and nails. Floors and stairs that have been covered with mud can be very slippery.
• The use of large fans can speed the drying process and curtail the development of mold.
• Be alert for gas leaks. Use a flashlight to inspect for damage. Don’t smoke or use candles, lanterns, or open flames unless you are sure that the gas has been turned off and the area has been aired out.

READ: Spam, or Super Important? Tips for Deciphering SMS Messages When You Don’t Read Chinese

These safety tips were sourced from maglioelectricllc.com, denvergov.org, and oci.ga.gov.

This article originally appeared on our sister site beijingkids.

Photo: BJ News

After a week of flood disaster relief in its northern end, Beijing was hit with more rains from the first typhoon to reach the city in over a decade.

Beijing issued a citywide yellow alert for rain yesterday morning after Typhoon Ampil made its arrival since Monday night, dropping an average of 2.4 centimeters of precipitation in 12 hours. The heaviest rainfall fell on parts of Tongzhou, which received over 10 centimeters over the same time and was been issued a local orange alert for rain, as had the districts of Pingu and Miyun. The government has issued a continued warning for potential mudslides in these outer-city areas.

Some 18,171 Beijing residents have been evacuated, of which over 5,000 come from Miyun where relief efforts have continued since last week when it was hit by heavy rains.

With the city raising a Category III emergency response, some 165 scenic areas remain closed as heavy rains and flood conditions spring up around the city.

Eighty-six flights were canceled by Tuesday afternoon at Beijing Capital International Airport, which issued an orange alert for its flight status.

Meanwhile, flooding was reported throughout the city, such as this intersection in Niulanshan, Shunyi:

And this street near the Joy City Mall in Chaoyang:

As the 10th typhoon of the year, Ampil made landfall at Shanghai on Sunday, bringing with it winds traveling at 28 meters per second at its eye. Typhoon Ampil prompted the evacuation of 220,000 people from flood-prone coastal areas as well as the cancelation of at least 600 flights from Shanghai’s two airports.

Despite all the havoc, Ampil has caused Shanghai, Beijing isn’t as likely to bear the typhoon’s wrath. Rains stopped around yesterday afternoon, and it is forecast to remain dry for the rest of the week.

For as much precipitation Beijing has received over the past week, there is not much of a precedent in which typhoons are to blame. Typhoon Matsa, the last typhoon to reach Beijing in 2005, only brought light rainfall to the capital despite causing 25 direct deaths and 18 billion yuan worth of damage throughout China.

More stories from this author here.

E-Mail: charlesliu1 (at) qq (dot) com
Twitter: @Sinopath

Images: BJ News, Weibo (1, 2)

Yesterday, the government issued a blue weather warning, denoting that there would be “localized and sudden instances of torrential rain,” which we’re only just seeing the full effects of and led to the warning being upgraded to orange at midday today, warning of flooding around the city. The heavy downpours are forecast to continue until tomorrow and have so far caused the cancelation of 50 flights and the delay of another 100.

This rain can’t help but remind us of that fateful day on July 21, 2012, when 79 people died during one particularly extraordinary rainstorm. It also serves as a reminder to be safe, no matter how much fun you’re having getting absolutely soaked.

Thanks to groundbreaking waterproof technology, you can now watch the whole mess live or catch some highlights from Weibo below:

Yesterday, the storm caused part of the Juyongguan Great Wall in Changping to collapse, leading to blockage of the highway below.

Gaode has released a handy interactive map (see screenshot above) showing the worst affected areas.