Flooding on Chinese subway with passengers on board

[PTR 444]

Commuters and children rescued from China floodwaters

Many people have been saved from the the waist-high waters across Henan province.

www.bbc.co.uk

Zhengzhou Henan: Chest-high flooding hits China trains and roads

Zhengzhou Henan: Chest-high flooding hits China trains and roadsClose

Roads and subway stations have been submerged across China's Henan province as heavy rain has brought severe floods.
One region in Henan has recorded 40cm (15 inches) of rainfall. In Zhengzhou, the city's entire subway system was forced to close.

Looks devastating. Hope the passengers eventually managed to escape unscathed.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Would certainly be scary as you'd not know how high it would go if underground! I wouldn't be looking as calm as the guy pictured.

 

[Beebman]

Video from the South China Morning Post:

(N.B. the video opens with a warning that some viewers may find some of the images disturbing)

 

[Trackman]

Would certainly be scary as you'd not know how high it would go if underground! I wouldn't be looking as calm as the guy pictured.

That's what I was thinking when I watched it last night.
Some people in the water without a care in the world.

 

[Bletchleyite]

That's what I was thinking when I watched it last night.
Some people in the water without a care in the world.

I think that demonstrates, quite scarily, the dangers that can be posed by Asian-style collectivism/deference to authority - it's not dissimilar to some of the videos from that Korean ferry that sank killing a load of schoolkids. They are (presumably) told to keep calm and stay put so they do. This can be helpful but often is not.

Having said that, I'm not quite sure what the best thing to do in the case with the water higher outside would be. If it would naturally clear staying put might indeed be best, as opening the doors would let higher, moving water in. Knowing the topography of the tunnels (so if it would naturally drain away or not) would certainly be useful.

 

[Gostav]

I think that demonstrates, quite scarily, the dangers that can be posed by Asian-style collectivism/deference to authority - it's not dissimilar to some of the videos from that Korean ferry that sank killing a load of schoolkids. They are (presumably) told to keep calm and stay put so they do. This can be helpful but often is not.

Having said that, I'm not quite sure what the best thing to do in the case with the water higher outside would be. If it would naturally clear staying put might indeed be best, as opening the doors would let higher, moving water in. Knowing the topography of the tunnels (so if it would naturally drain away or not) would certainly be useful.

In the beginning the driver tried to evacuate the passengers but the flooding had filled the tunnel so most people back to train, 12 people died in the train and the major reason is they must stood in the rising flood for at least two hours, some of them obviously failed to hold on.

 

[superalbs]

That looks absolutely terrifying, the thing of nightmares even.

 

[Meerkat]

Is it too cynical to wonder about whether the Chinese have been honest about how many people drowned?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Is it too cynical to wonder about whether the Chinese have been honest about how many people drowned?

I think you can be fairly sure they have not.

 

[Meerkat]

I think you can be fairly sure they have not.

That’s good. How so?

 

[Bletchleyite]

That’s good. How so?

Not sure why it is good, but I think we can be sure that the Chinese Government have lied to cover up things being bad, becabuse that is what they usually do!

(I suspect you might have read my reply the opposite way than intended! )

 

[Meerkat]

Not sure why it is good, but I think we can be sure that the Chinese Government have lied to cover up things being bad, becabuse that is what they usually do!

(I suspect you might have read my reply the opposite way than intended! )

Oops, I think I read my own post the wrong way round so thought you were disagreeing!
i was watching the cricket at the same time…..

 

[bb21]

I think you can be fairly sure they have not.

I read the death toll numbers with a huge pinch of salt.

That's what happens when you lose credibility, and have been found out several times.

I think actually in most cases the numbers are genuine, especially when the numbers hit that sort of magnitude, but local officials are not unknown to lie, so you don't really know who to trust. You make up your own mind.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I read the death toll numbers with a huge pinch of salt.

That's what happens when you lose credibility, and have been found out several times.

I think actually in most cases the numbers are genuine, especially when the numbers hit that sort of magnitude, but local officials are not unknown to lie, so you don't really know who to trust. You make up your own mind.

True. While it is possible to come up with all manner of conspiracy theories against the Chinese central Government, most of them fully justified, Asian culture has a general and very strong thing about "not losing face" so this may well cause figures to be adjusted at all levels.