Milan (AsiaNews/Agencies) – A Chinese Catholic priest is also among the victims of the new wave of violent floods hitting south-eastern China, in yet another natural disaster occurring hundreds of kilometres away from the disaster that struck the Himalayas last week.
According to reports from the Diocese of Fuzhou, in the Chinese province of Fujian, Father Wang Gengxian, aged 55, was swept away whilst travelling on 3 September from Nanxi Church to Nanjiang Church on pastoral business. During the journey, he was confronted by floodwaters and lost his life in the emergency. His body was found on the afternoon of 4 September, at around 5.00 pm. The news has sparked deep sorrow within the local Catholic community: “We ask with all our hearts that you pray for him, so that the Lord may grant him eternal life”.
Father Wang’s death comes amid particularly severe weather conditions affecting the whole of south-east China. Typhoon Saudel made landfall in China for the third time, striking the Fujian coast yesterday morning, having already hit the neighbouring province of Zhejiang twice. A three-storey building was swept away by the current in Xianyou County.
Faced with the risk of further heavy rainfall and consequent flooding, the authorities have implemented numerous emergency measures. In-person school activities have been suspended in several cities, including Fuzhou and Quanzhou, whilst some tourist attractions have been temporarily closed. Ferry services have also been severely restricted. According to reports by the Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, 24 passenger ferry routes along the Fujian coast have been suspended.
The province is currently experiencing a period of persistent and particularly heavy rainfall: almost 250,000 people living in areas considered to be most at risk have been evacuated. And this is just the latest in a series of extreme weather events that have caused casualties and extensive damage in various parts of China in recent weeks. Particularly tragic was the incident last July in the southern region of Guangxi, where at least 159 people died as a result of the devastating floods caused by Typhoon Maysak.
