37人在北京洪涝中丧生 Fury after 37 killed in Beijing floods

What has been described as the "heaviest rain in six decades" left at least 37 people dead and raised criticism about Beijing's infrastructure and the government's response to disasters.

被形容为“六十年来最严重的大雨”，造成至少37人死亡，并引起了对北京基础设施以及政府应对灾害的批评。

The torrential downpour lasted 10 hours over the weekend, producing gusty winds and a tornado in one suburb, according to local media.

据当地媒体报道，上周末倾盆大雨持续了10个小时，某个郊区还刮起了大风和龙卷风。

The deluge was the largest since 1951, when the state weather record was established, according to Beijing Morning post, bringing about 6.7 inches of rain in some parts of Beijing, and as much as 18 inches in the suburban Fangshan district.

据《北京晨报》报道，这次洪水是自1951年国家气象记录成立以来最大的一次，北京一些地区降雨量约达6.7英尺，并郊区的房山县则高达18英寸。

Of the 37 deaths in Beijing, 25 people drowned, reported Xinhua. Another six were killed in collapsing houses, five were electrocuted, and one was hit by lightning, the agency reported, citing the municipal government.

据新华社引用市政府的报道称，在这次洪水死亡的37人中，有25人溺水身亡，6人在房屋倒塌中身亡，5人触电死亡，和1人闪电击中。

The flooding killed 95 people and 45 were reported missing in 17 provincial areas of China, Xinhua reported. Nearly 6.23 million people were affected by the heavy rains, which started July 20.

据新华社报道，这次洪水造成95人死亡，45人失踪在中国17个省级地区。7月20日开始，受到暴雨影响人数将近623万。

The deaths from the storm triggered a torrent of criticism, even from a state-run newspaper, as well as Sina Weibo, the popular Chinese microblogging site. Some social media users implied the number of deaths was much higher.

这次暴风雨造成的死亡人数引发了一场批评洪流，从一家国营报纸到中国受欢迎的微博网站——新浪微博。一些社会媒体用户暗示，死亡人数要高得多。

CNN contacted Beijing's flood control office, municipal government emergency office and municipal meteorological bureau to get an updated death toll. The agencies said that they were too busy summarizing data and couldn't make comments at the time.

中国新闻网联系北京防汛办公室，市政府应急办，市气象局，以获取更新的死亡人数。该机构说，他们忙于汇总数据，这时候无法作出评论。

Questions CNN sent by fax to the state meteorological bureau were not returned by Monday afternoon.

中国新闻网通过传真发送到国家气象局的问题直到星期一下午都没有回应。

Although the weather had cleared in Beijing by Sunday morning, the flooding remained a hot topic, with many expressing outrage over the deaths and what they perceived as a botched government response.

The Global Times published an article stating that the downpour"exposes holes in the modernization drive."

虽然星期天早上北京的天气已经放晴，但是洪水仍然是一个热门话题，许多人对死亡表示愤慨，他们认为这是一个拙劣的政府响应。《环球时报》发表的一篇文章指出倾盆大雨暴露了现代化建设中的漏洞。

"In recent years, floods caused by rain storms have repeatedly occurred in Chinese cities. And the latest downpour in Beijing has stirred up a new round of skepticism on the quality of infrastructure amid rapid urbanization."

“近年来，由暴雨引发的洪水已多次发生在中国的城市。北京最近的这场倾盆大雨在掀起了对快速城市化进程中基础设施的质量的新一轮质疑。”

Many people marveled at how fragile the Beijing's infrastructure seemed for a modern metropolis. Despite the billions of dollars spent to upgrade its roads and buildings, the city's sewage system appeared quickly overwhelmed by the rainstorm.

很多人惊讶于对于一个现代化大都市来说，北京的基础设施是多么的脆弱。尽管数十亿美元用于升级其道路和建筑物，城市的污水处理系统还是被来势凶猛的暴雨所淹没。

The Beijing-based media group, Caixin wrote on Weibo: "Why is this happening once and again? Year after year Beijing faces the same challenge, not even hosting the Olympics can provide a solution. That's how vulnerable our capital city can be."

总部设在北京的一个媒体集团，财新网在微博上写到：“为什么这一局面再次发生？北京一年又一年地面临着同样的挑战，这不是举办奥运会就可以提供解决方案的。我们的首都是多么的脆弱。”

Another user, chuntiangushi wrote: "We can host the most luxurious Olympics and send satellites into space but can never seem to fix this drainage system. What a shame."

另一个用户，春天故事写道：“我们可以举办最豪华的奥运会，将卫星送入太空，但似乎从来没有解决这个排水系统。真羞愧！”

Others disagreed. Weibo user VOo wrote: "I think our city's drainage system is till much better then a decade ago. "

其他人则表示不同意。微博用户VOO写道：“我认为我们城市的排水系统比起十年仍然是更好的。”

Others were critical that there was no emergency broadcast system deployed, no government shelters and no special hotlines.

其他人批判，没有部署紧急广播系统，没有政府庇护所也没有特别热线。

Chinese media reported that there were various color-coded weather warnings, but several public policy experts complained in Chinese media that the warnings made sense only to experts, not the general public.

中国媒体报道说，有各种不同颜色编码的天气警报，但一些公共政策专家对中国媒体抱怨说，警报只对专家有意义，而不是对一般公众。

Local television broadcasts focused on heroic stories of search and rescue efforts and people helping each other. Traffic was snarled for hours in the aftermath of the storm, leaving drivers and pedestrians stranded throughout the city. Many pitched into help one other as the streets were flooded, sometimes as deep as new figure is about 20 feet (6 meters).

当地电视报道集中在寻找和救援工作以及人们互相帮助的英雄事迹。暴风雨后，交通瘫痪数小时，导致整个城市的司机和行人滞留。洪水淹没街道，迫使人们互相帮助，有时水深约达20英尺。

Some on Weibo praised the way residents helped each other, calling it the "Beijing spirit."

有的人在微博上赞扬居民互相帮助的方式，称之为”北京精神“。

"Beijing is a city with heart and soul. Love will pull us through the hardship," wrote user liushuhan.

用户liushuhan写道：“北京是一个城市的心脏和灵魂，爱会使我们度过难关”。

Thousands of emergency responders were deployed and divers had to be brought in to search for anyone trapped.

政府已经部署成千上万的应急措施，派潜水员搜索被困人员。

Officials said almost 2 million people were affected by the rainstorm and the economic losses have exceeded $1.5 billion. The floods submerged some power supply facilities and led to blackouts in parts of the city, according to Xinhua.

官方称，近2亿人受到暴雨影响，经济损失总额超过150亿美元。据新华社报道，洪水淹没了一些供电设施，导致城市的部分地区停电。