China's Water Ministry Mobilises Flood Defences Ahead of Typhoon Hongxia

The central Cyberspace Administration and the Ministry of Emergency Management launched a joint crackdown on illegal disaster‑related information, targeting AI‑fabricated footage, fake videos and fraud that exploit natural calamities. The operation, announced on 23 July, aims to clean up misleading content while calling for balanced treatment of unintentional mistakes by citizens and media.

On 24 July, the Water Resources Ministry held a special meeting to assess the impact of Typhoon Hongxia. Officials highlighted expected water‑level rises in major rivers across the Pearl River, Yangtze, Huai, Yellow and Songhua basins, and warned of flash‑flood and landslide risks in Guangdong, Jiangxi and other provinces. The ministry ordered stricter flood‑control responsibilities, enhanced monitoring and forecasting, pre‑emptive reservoir releases, and reinforced levee inspections to prevent dam failures and urban flooding.