On the afternoon of August 23rd, a heavy rainstorm hit the Miyun district in Beijing, causing multiple large trees along the roadside to be uprooted and fall, damaging nearby cars. The incident has sparked discussion among local residents.
Videos shared online by residents of Miyun showed a row of large trees planted along Guoyuan West Road next to the Beijing Miyun Brewery, with parked cars lining the road. Around 4 p.m. on the 23rd, the heavy rain lasted for half an hour, resulting in many of the large trees toppling over and hitting the vehicles parked on the roadside.
The video quickly became a topic of discussion online, with comments such as, “Even such large trees fell over?” and “It’s horrifying to see a row of trees collapsing like that.”
Some residents also left comments expressing fear, stating, “It’s super scary, many trees by the river also fell down, with a lot ending up in the river.”
One resident from Miyun pointed out that all the trees that fell were large willow trees, many of which had been leaning and appeared vulnerable to falling, yet had not been tended to. It is likely that someone will now have to take responsibility for them.
In Huairou, another area in Beijing, a similar downpour occurred in less than half an hour. A local resident shared, “This happened right behind my house. After the rain stopped, I went to take a look and even the fire trucks had arrived. It was so frightening; in just twenty minutes, the trees were completely uprooted.”
Residents from other districts in Beijing also chimed in with their experiences. A resident from Haidian district said, “It’s a bit terrifying. Beijing is really vast; here in my area, Haidian, we only had a few drops of rain.” Another Haidian resident mentioned, “There was just a bit of wind, no rain to be seen.” and “Here in Haidian, we had some strong winds and dark clouds, but no rain fell.”
A resident from the Xicheng district commented, “Around 4 p.m. this afternoon, the Xicheng area was just overcast.”
Residents of Fangshan said, “We didn’t see anything in Fangshan, not even a single drop of rain.”
Residents from Chaoyang also reported, “There was a heavy rainstorm in Chaoyang Dongba, lasting half an hour.”
A resident near the Fifth Ring Road noted, “In the evening, a sudden gust of wind came, it looked like rain was coming, but after a while, it didn’t rain. I knew it must have been raining elsewhere.”
Compared to most parts of Beijing, the phenomena of trees falling due to heavy rain appeared in Miyun and Huairou. Some people joked that Miyun and Huairou experienced a “demonic wind.”
Mr. Yang from Changping also mentioned that there was a similar phenomenon of a “demonic wind” near Haidian.
Furthermore, a Beijing woman shared that her husband was driving when suddenly he exclaimed as a tree fell on a car coming from the opposite direction, narrowly missing theirs.
The discussion about trees falling during rainstorms in Beijing has also ignited online debates. Some people commented, “Feels like every time it rains this year in Beijing, trees fall over.”
Others suggested that Beijing authorities should investigate the large number of tree falls this year to determine the root cause.
Regarding compensation for damage caused by falling trees, a car owner whose vehicle was hit said, “If the insurance company compensates, it depends on whether the car is insured. I called the police at the time, and they issued a no-fault certificate.”
Some residents believe that if the insurance company does not compensate, it would be unfortunate, and compensation should then be sought from the sanitation department, street office, or the forestry bureau.
A car owner who had a similar experience previously stated, “Last time it rained, a tree branch shattered my car’s rear window. The insurance company told me I could seek compensation from the forestry department. I made a call and went through the process, determining the amount of loss for compensation.”
Others expressed the necessity for a government organization to provide compensation, stating that otherwise, trees with parking spaces by the roadside would have to be cut down.