Ancient town under water as downpours hit central China

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The bridge submerged in floodwaters in the ancient town of Fenghuang, central China’s Hunan province. — AFP photo

BEIJING: One of China’s renowned ancient towns was under water yesterday as heavy rain hit the centre of the country, with tens of thousands of people evacuated from the area.

The old town district of Fenghuang nestles on the banks of a winding river in a picturesque, mountainous part of Hunan province, and boasts stunning Qing and Ming dynasty architecture dating back hundreds of years.

It can attract 30,000 visitors a day and has applied for world heritage status recognition from Unesco, but pictures showed it inundated, with the central span of a bridge poking up through the waters.

Reports said electricity had been cut off and more than 120,000 tourists and locals had been evacuated from Fenghuang and the surrounding county.

According to China’s official Xinhua news agency, the Tuojiang river in the town had reached 1.1 metres above its previous highest recorded level, and several bridges had been damaged or destroyed. — AFP