Huang He River Floods
Huang He floods, (1887, 1931) series of devastating floods in China caused by the overflowing of the Huang He (Yellow River), the country’s second longest river. These three floods collectively killed millions and are considered to be the three deadliest floods in history and among the most destructive natural disasters ever recorded.
The Huang He, which has a length of 3,395 miles (5,464 km), is the main river of northern China, rising in the eastern Kunlun Mountains in Qinghai province in the west of the country and flowing generally east until it empties into the Bo Hai (Gulf of Chihli), an embayment of the Yellow Sea. The river takes its name from the large amounts of fine yellow sediment (loess) colouring its water. The extensive silt deposition in the river’s lower reaches across the North China Plain and the expansive stretches of flat land surrounding it have always made the area extremely prone to flooding. As the world’s most heavily silted river, the Huang He is estimated to have flooded some 1,500 times since the 2nd century bce, causing unimaginable death and devastation.
1887
In 1887, the Huang He caused the deaths of 900,000 to two million during another of the river’s catastrophic flood events. The cause of these floods was silt washed into the river from loess deposits in the river headwaters that have elevated the river above the surrounding flood plain and so dikes have been built to contain the river’s course, thus when the dikes are overwhelmed the ensuing flood quickly submerges the thousand of square miles of neighboring flood plains. In the past decade the Three Gorges Dam Project has so far been successful in mitigating the river’s flooding.
1931
The 1931 Central China floods or the Central China floods of 1931 were a series of floods that occurred in mainland China. The floods are generally considered among the deadliest natural disasters ever recorded, and almost certainly the deadliest of the 20th century
Death toll:
Chinese sources usually indicate the death toll of the Yellow River overflow at about 145,000, with flood damage affecting around 28.5 million,[1] while most Western sources give a far higher death toll of between 3.7 and 4 million people.
Meteorogical Causes:
From 1928 to 1930, a long drought afflicted China.[4] By some accounts, abnormal weather over central China began in the winter of late 1930. Heavy snowstorms in the winter were followed by a spring thaw and heavy rains that raised the river levels significantly. The rain grew heavier in July and August 1931.[2] In July alone, seven cyclones hit the region; on average, two occur per year.
Government Reactions on floods of 1931:
Republic era (1930s–1940s) In the wake of the disaster, the Nationalist government set up organisations such as the Huai River Conservancy Commission to address flood problems.[2] However, due to a lack of funding and the chaos of the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, the various commissions were only able to construct small dams along the Yangzte River
Communist era (post-1950) In 1953, Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong took a trip to the Yangzte River to promote the Three Gorges Dam flood control project. "The Socialist Three Gorges Dam project should excel other major projects in Chinese history such as Qin Shi Huang's Great Wall and Sui Yang Di's Grand Canal", he stated.[7]
Scientists and officials who raised doubts, such as Chen Mingshu, were persecuted as rightists. Li Siguang, a prominent scientist and minister of geological resources, told Mao he would commit suicide if he could not stop the construction of the dam.[7] The project did not move beyond the planning stage in Mao's time, due to a lack of resources, rising Sino-Soviet tensions and the upheavals of the Great Leap Forward.[7] The project was restarted in the 1980s, and the hydroelectric Three Gorges Dam began full operation in 2012, becoming the world's largest power station in terms of installed capacity.
The Huang He, which has a length of 3,395 miles (5,464 km), is the main river of northern China, rising in the eastern Kunlun Mountains in Qinghai province in the west of the country and flowing generally east until it empties into the Bo Hai (Gulf of Chihli), an embayment of the Yellow Sea. The river takes its name from the large amounts of fine yellow sediment (loess) colouring its water. The extensive silt deposition in the river’s lower reaches across the North China Plain and the expansive stretches of flat land surrounding it have always made the area extremely prone to flooding. As the world’s most heavily silted river, the Huang He is estimated to have flooded some 1,500 times since the 2nd century bce, causing unimaginable death and devastation.
1887
In 1887, the Huang He caused the deaths of 900,000 to two million during another of the river’s catastrophic flood events. The cause of these floods was silt washed into the river from loess deposits in the river headwaters that have elevated the river above the surrounding flood plain and so dikes have been built to contain the river’s course, thus when the dikes are overwhelmed the ensuing flood quickly submerges the thousand of square miles of neighboring flood plains. In the past decade the Three Gorges Dam Project has so far been successful in mitigating the river’s flooding.
1931
The 1931 Central China floods or the Central China floods of 1931 were a series of floods that occurred in mainland China. The floods are generally considered among the deadliest natural disasters ever recorded, and almost certainly the deadliest of the 20th century
Death toll:
Chinese sources usually indicate the death toll of the Yellow River overflow at about 145,000, with flood damage affecting around 28.5 million,[1] while most Western sources give a far higher death toll of between 3.7 and 4 million people.
Meteorogical Causes:
From 1928 to 1930, a long drought afflicted China.[4] By some accounts, abnormal weather over central China began in the winter of late 1930. Heavy snowstorms in the winter were followed by a spring thaw and heavy rains that raised the river levels significantly. The rain grew heavier in July and August 1931.[2] In July alone, seven cyclones hit the region; on average, two occur per year.
Government Reactions on floods of 1931:
Republic era (1930s–1940s) In the wake of the disaster, the Nationalist government set up organisations such as the Huai River Conservancy Commission to address flood problems.[2] However, due to a lack of funding and the chaos of the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, the various commissions were only able to construct small dams along the Yangzte River
Communist era (post-1950) In 1953, Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong took a trip to the Yangzte River to promote the Three Gorges Dam flood control project. "The Socialist Three Gorges Dam project should excel other major projects in Chinese history such as Qin Shi Huang's Great Wall and Sui Yang Di's Grand Canal", he stated.[7]
Scientists and officials who raised doubts, such as Chen Mingshu, were persecuted as rightists. Li Siguang, a prominent scientist and minister of geological resources, told Mao he would commit suicide if he could not stop the construction of the dam.[7] The project did not move beyond the planning stage in Mao's time, due to a lack of resources, rising Sino-Soviet tensions and the upheavals of the Great Leap Forward.[7] The project was restarted in the 1980s, and the hydroelectric Three Gorges Dam began full operation in 2012, becoming the world's largest power station in terms of installed capacity.