Preparing for more rain

The aftereffects of the heaviest rainstorm to lash Beijing in six decades is far from over, not just because of the heavy relief efforts that the suburban and rural areas demand, but also because of the urgency to strengthen disaster preparedness.

That Beijing will have more rainy days this year has added to the urgency. When the sky over the city was overcast on Wednesday, when another heavy rainstorm was forecast, the local meteorological department sent more than 11 million text messages to alert residents. Compared with Saturday, when residents received no warning, the local government did a better job on Wednesday.

Thankfully, it proved to be a false alarm because the storm skipped most parts of the city, but even this time, not all residents received the messages. There should be no technical difficulty for local government departments in informing residents of extreme weather in time.