10 dead, 30,000 evacuated in Beijing downpour

BEIJING - The heaviest rain in six decades in the Chinese capital has left 10 people dead, Beijing authorities said Sunday.

As of 4 a.m. Sunday, more than 30,000 residents in districts of Fangshan, Huairou, Mentougou and Pinggu as well as Miyun and Yanqing counties were relocated, the city's floods control headquarters said at 9 a.m.

In Fangshan, where the maximum precipitation reached 460 mm in Hebei Township as of 6 a.m., road traffic in 12 townships was disrupted. Mobile telecommunication services and Internet access were cut off in six townships, the headquarters said.

Train services between Beijing and Guangzhou were suspended as the railway line section at Nangangwa, Fengtai District, was soaked in water, the headquarters said.

More than 12,000 people worked for draining 1 million cubic meters of water from streets. Most puddles in the city were cleared by 6 a.m.

As of 6 a.m., citywide people suffered an average precipitation of 170 mm.