Flood hits Xingtai, Hebei, killing many people, officials kneel down to "seek understanding"

On the 22nd, a video with text of "Xingtai Development Zone Management Committee Secretary kneeling down" swept the Xingtai WeChat Moments. In the video, three women and one man were kneeling on the road crying, and a man on the opposite side was kneeling on the ground trying to comfort them. Beijing Time contacted Wang Qingfei, deputy secretary of the Party Working Committee of the Xingtai Economic Development Zone Management Committee, and confirmed that it was him who knelt on the ground to appease the masses.

Wang Qingfei said that the masses were very emotional at the time, and kneeling down to appease them was a way to gain their understanding.

Witness: Villagers blocked the road, causing it to be cut off

An eyewitness told Beijing Time that in the early morning of the 20th, floods from the Xingtai Chuankou Reservoir suddenly poured into the downstream villages, causing many people to be drowned. Some villagers therefore blocked the road and demanded dialogue with the government.

The road blockage occurred at around 8 am on the 22nd. The people who blocked the road were villagers from Daxian Village, Dongwang Town, Xingtai Development Zone. At that time, traffic on the Xingtai section of National Highway 107 and Provincial Highway 326 was paralyzed. After someone called the police, the police rushed to the scene and persuaded the people blocking the road to evacuate, but they refused.

The incident escalated quickly. As more and more people blocked the road, a large number of police rushed to reinforce and control the situation. Wang Qingfei, deputy secretary of the Party Working Committee of the Development Zone Management Committee, rushed to the scene to direct the situation.

Someone in the video loudly questioned Wang Qingfei: "Do you know how many people died in our village?" Wang Qingfei kept nodding without giving a direct response.

Daxian Village is located on the north bank of Qili River in Xingtai, closely adjacent to the river. The Qili River is downstream of the Chuankou Reservoir's flood discharge. During floods, the water level in the river rises rapidly, flooding the river banks and pouring into the villages.

Villagers in Daxian said that at around 1 a.m. on the 20th, floods suddenly poured into the village. In an instant, the water level was 2 meters above the roofs. The sleeping people were caught off guard and the entire village was submerged in a vast ocean. At present, it has been confirmed that the flood has caused many deaths and two children are still missing.

Deputy Secretary: To win the understanding of the masses

Someone in the video questioned why the reservoir did not promptly notify the villages along the river downstream when it released water? Wang Qingfei explained that there was no flood discharge from the Kawakou Reservoir. The sudden rainfall at that time formed a huge flood peak that passed along the river and submerged the village.

As to why Wang Qingfei knelt down in front of the masses, the family of the deceased believed that it was because the leader felt guilty towards the people, while Wang Qingfei explained that it was to appease the masses and win their understanding.

At present, the Xingtai Economic Development Zone Management Committee and Dongwang Town Government are doing their best to comfort the affected people. Wang Qingfei did not respond to Beijing Time about the specific death toll.