Guangdong sees enormous reduction in disaster-related casualties

South China's Guangdong province, one of the Chinese coastal regions hardest hit by typhoons and torrential rains each year, has witnessed a big reduction in casualties since the beginning of the year.

According to Zhong Youguo, deputy director-general of the Guangdong Provincial Department of Emergency Management, only 17 people were killed in floods, rainstorms and related disasters in Guangdong province as of Oct 1, a year-on-year reduction of 73.44 percent.

Zhong attributed the reduction of casualties in his province to the introduction of artificial intelligence, big data analysis, information, scientific and innovation management in the province.

"Guangdong has now constructed a smart emergency big data platform to help study and judge disaster situations and their development trends to discover and eliminate the dangers early," Zhong said at a press conference in the provincial capital on Wednesday.

Guangdong province and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions have established an emergency coordination platform and emergency plan to strengthen cooperation in fighting natural disasters, he said.

Relevant departments and cities have also been required to introduce people-oriented disaster prevention and relief policies and stick to the red line that development must not be at the expense of human life, Zhong added.

Located in the subtropical zone, Guangdong, one of the country's economic powerhouses, has experienced 23 rounds of torrential rains and four typhoons this year.

More than 1.18 million people from 15 prefecture-level cities in the province were affected by the floods and torrential rains and related disasters this year.

And 124,244 people had to be evacuated to safe areas because of disasters when more than 1,860 houses collapsed and 83,122 hectares of crop lands were flooded.

Guangdong's direct economic losses from floods and torrential rains this year have reached 5.5 billion yuan ($846.15 million).