Internet users map out Beijing hazards
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E-mail Xinhua, July 25, 2012
China's Internet users are sharing self-made maps marking Beijing's flood-prone areas following the weekend's deadly downpour.
The maps, identifying potentially waterlogged streets during rainstorms, appeared after torrential rains inundated Beijing on Saturday, leaving 37 people dead.
An official statement said 25 people drowned when the rain, said to be the worst in six decades, submerged many sections of the city's streets.
In one map created by "goldengrape," 40 places in Beijing are labeled as "dangerous" based on experiences during Saturday's rainstorm. Descriptions were also added, such as "intersection of Xi'erqi North Road, low-lying, many manhole covers washed away."
Netizens said the map would help them cope with future cloudbursts, as they said the city's road conditions couldn't be improved in a short time.
Other posts and videos included survival tips such as how to break open car windows. Earlier reports said a Beijing man drowned in his car on Saturday night after driving into a pool 4 meters deep formed by rainwater. He is said to have knocked his head against the window in a failed attempt to break free.
According to a map published by Beijing's flood control office, 80 spots in the city were still covered in water as of 9am yesterday. The office will soon publish its version of a "flood map" pointing out flood-prone areas in Beijing, said spokesman Liu Hongwei.
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