Recently, within the borders of Xiangtan County in Hunan, Jian River has been hit by heavy rain. Officials claim there are only four breaches in the river, but citizens have exposed the Chinese Communist Party’s concealment, revealing that there are over ten breaches in just one town in Xiangtan County. Mainland experts admit that the flood defenses of the rivers in Xiangtan County are like putting a mantis’s arm in front of a car.
In early July, the breach of Dongting Lake in Hunan was mishandled, leading to the complete collapse of Tuanzhou Embankment. The accumulated water has not been cleared yet, and local residents’ houses are still submerged.
According to reports from mainland media, on the evening of the 28th, around 6 p.m., the first breach in Longshuwan, Liushuwan, a location along the Jian River embankment, appeared to be over ten meters long. Around 8 p.m. that same evening, the second breach occurred in the Sixin dike of Guojiaqiao xintang Village in Yisuhe Town, Xiangtan County. By the next day (29th), the breach had widened to 77 meters by around 4 a.m.
Around 1:40 p.m. on the 29th, there was a dangerous situation due to a breach in Huazhong Village, Xiangtan County, with the breach length reaching over 30 meters by 3 p.m.
On the evening of the 29th, a local resident disclosed that a breach had also appeared in Shaquan Village in the river mouth town.
A maintenance worker in the area also stated on the evening of the 30th that there were at least over ten breaches in Xiangtan.
By the night of the 30th, someone familiar with the local water situation revealed that people outside don’t truly understand Xiangtan, “In fact, with the collapse of fish ponds, there are over a hundred breaches big and small. There are really a lot of breaches in ponds. Majiayan Village alone has 10 breaches, not to mention a place as big as Xiangtan.”
Hunan’s water engineering experts mentioned in a program that Xiangtan County and Xiangtan City are facing severe disasters for several reasons. The local rainfall has reached historic highs, with the water level of the rivers exceeding the protection level by 5 meters, which puts significant pressure on the river embankments. Furthermore, the embankments are designed to withstand floods that occur every 5 to 10 years, but using them to combat a flood of this magnitude is like hitting a rock with an egg. The situation is slightly improving now, as the water level in the rivers is decreasing, which will aid in the inland water in Xiangtan flowing back to the rivers.
Public records show that Xiangtan County is situated in the central part of Hunan, encompassing 7 townships, 15 towns, with a total population of 1.14 million over an area of 2512 square kilometers. Majiayan is located in Baishi Town (formerly Majiayan Township) in Xiangtan County, Hunan.
Local residents revealed on social media that the Jian River passes through multiple towns in Xiangtan County, primarily used for irrigating farmland and providing water for daily life in the region. The local embankments are made of mud, and now that they have collapsed, on the afternoon of the 29th, downstream residents were alerted to run.
Locals online mentioned that the water levels in many parts of Xiangtan County were high enough to deploy “rowing mode,” questioning the authorities’ downplaying the disaster. Currently, there is almost no mention of the flooding on hot search lists on social media platforms like Weibo. Reports from official media outlets about Xiangtan receive only a few thousand views within an hour, leading netizens to believe that the information is being suppressed to manipulate traffic. They are calling for accountability.
A netizen from Hunan stated, “This year, the rice fields have been flooded twice, and the river embankments have collapsed. If the embankments were reinforced, this wouldn’t have happened. The embankments were shoddily constructed three times. The reservoirs have breached twice, but many of these can be prevented in advance. From 2016 to now, it has flooded nine times.”
Three weeks ago, on July 5th, Tuanzhou Embankment in Hunan’s Dongting Lake broke, with the officials’ wrong approach leading to the failure of repairing the breach. After the embankment breach, the officials stated that they would repair the embankment once the water levels inside and outside the embankment are equal. A few days later, the authorities announced that the breach had been restored. Although the water level in Dongting Lake has receded, the accumulated water inside the embankment remains uncleared.
Following the breach in Dongting Lake, Tuanzhou Embankment and Pingjiang were severely affected.
Mr. Chen from Tuanzhou Embankment in Hunan stated on the 30th, “The affected area in Hunan is increasing day by day, with the worst being Tuanzhou Embankment and Pingjiang. My house has been submerged for over twenty days, around five meters deep.”
Another victim from Tuanzhou Embankment said, “My house has also been underwater for over twenty days, and it still is.”
A netizen suggested that Tuanzhou Embankment was reclaimed from Dongting Lake and that it would be hazardous whenever the lake water rose. Another netizen commented, “This is the second time this has happened in Hunan this year. What does it indicate?”
Mr. Deng from Hunan expressed that in his thirty years of life, it was the first time he had seen water entering his home.
Mr. Li from Hunan also shared that in his over forty years of life, this was his second experience, with the first being 28 years ago and now again this year.