Flash Floods Sweep Away Cars, Cut Roads to Villages in Northern China

A person filming the flood said some vehicles still had occupants inside; no official statement addressed whether they were rescued.

Video footage recorded by local residents show flash floods sweeping away vehicles in Kuancheng County, Hebei Province, China, on July 12, 2026. Screenshot via social media

Flash flooding swept away vehicles in Kuancheng County in northern China on July 12, with video footage showing cars spinning, colliding, and being carried downstream by fast-moving water.

In one video recorded shortly after 10 p.m., an unidentified local woman said the first floor of her home had been submerged and the area had lost power, forcing her to light candles. She said she saw people struggling in the water but was unable to help them.

“It’s terrifying,“ she repeated as several vehicles were swept away and floodwater rose nearly to the top of the pumps at a gas station across the street. ”[Please] send rescuers quickly.”

The Epoch Times could not independently confirm her account or determine what had happened to those she described.

Other video footage shot by local residents shows streets turned into turbulent streams and washing away vehicles piling against one another, some with their hazard lights still flashing, and muddy water surging through built-up areas of the mountainous county in Hebei Province.

State media outlet CCTV reported that rain associated with Typhoon Bavi triggered flash flooding that damaged roads and cut transportation to nine villages across four township-level areas, trapping more than 1,800 residents.

Daytime video footage on July 13 from Xibingjiao, one of the nine villages, showed homes and roads still submerged. CCTV reported that water had entered every home in the village, with floodwater about 6 feet deep and nearly two-thirds of some single-story houses underwater.

A villager said that water began entering homes roughly 10 minutes after heavy rain started on the night of July 12, leaving residents without enough time to evacuate. Many climbed onto their roofs to escape the rising water.

The state media report states that no one was killed or injured in Xibingjiao. CCTV did not provide casualty information for the other eight villages or address what happened to people whom local residents said were inside vehicles swept away during the flooding.

CCTV said the village sits beside the Bao River and that heavy rain farther upstream in Pingquan caused river water and rainwater to flow into villages in Kuancheng.

A local business owner surnamed Qiao said floodwater rose above six feet and damaged her store. Public reports did not provide a countywide count of damaged homes, businesses, vehicles, or roads.

China Weather Network reported that Typhoon Bavi transported moisture into northern China, where it combined with cold air to produce heavy rain. Kuancheng and nearby Qianxi County had recorded more than four inches of rain over six hours on July 11, during an earlier stage of the weather system.

As of publication time, the Kuancheng County government’s website carried no report about the flooding.

No public report from local police, fire, emergency, or health authorities had addressed whether people were inside the vehicles being carried away by floodwater or whether they were rescued.