Zhejiang, China – Achieving Zero Casualties in Extreme Rainfall through Progressive Services and a High-Level Call-Response Mechanism

Context and Hazard Overview From June 8 to 15, 2024, Qingyuan County in Zhejiang Province experienced unprecedented extreme rainfall. The cumulative area-average precipitation reached 555.2 mm, with local maximums breaking historical records. Located in the mountainous region of southwestern Zhejiang, the area faces an extremely high risk of flash floods and debris flows. Despite these challenges, the county safely evacuated 494 people, achieving zero casualties through a seamless "Warning-Response-Action" closed-loop system.

1. Pre-Hazard Phase: Progressive Services and Escalation Mechanism The meteorological department implemented progressive services, where warning signals and response levels were escalated in sync with the developing threat:

• Progressive Warning Escalation: Warning signals were upgraded incrementally from Blue and Yellow to Orange and Red. Simultaneously, the county’s meteorological emergency response level was raised from Level IV to Level I.

• High-Level Call-Response Trigger: Each warning upgrade automatically triggered the High-Level Call-Response Mechanism. Point-to-point telephone notifications were made to primary government leaders and heads of key departments (Emergency Management, Water Resources, and Natural Resources) to convey risk assessments and specific defense recommendations.

• Strategic Deployment: In response, the county government organized multiple cross-departmental consultations to coordinate personnel and resource deployment, ensuring the flood control response level matched the meteorological warning level (Level IV to Level I).

2. During-Hazard Phase: Multi-Channel Dissemination and Hard-Core Measures As the rainfall intensified, the service focused on high-frequency updates and triggering immediate physical defense:

• Intensive Monitoring & Updates: Meteorological authorities provided rolling rain reports every 30 to 60 minutes and maintained continuous video links with emergency and water departments.

• Massive Multi-Channel Dissemination: A total of 653 warning signals were issued (including 616 meteorological warnings). These were disseminated via SMS (37,576 messages), "ZheZhengDing" (3,639 digital office messages), TV, radio, and the National Public Early Warning System. A digital platform notified over 400 grassroots focal points within one second, supplemented by manual verification calls.

• "Five Suspensions" and "Five Interruptions": Upon reaching the Orange Warning, "Five Suspensions" (classes, work, production, transport, and business) were enacted. At the Red Warning level, "Five Interruptions" (water, electricity, gas, transport, and communication breaks in high-risk areas) were implemented to prevent secondary accidents.

• Grassroots Evacuation: Community grid managers utilized gongs, loudspeakers, and mobile apps to reach every household. For instance, in Longxi Township, 135 residents were successfully moved to safety within two hours.

3. Post-Hazard Phase: Relief and Evaluation The continuous information flow during the hazard phase allowed for a seamless transition to disaster relief. Because early actions prevented casualties, the post-hazard focus shifted directly to damage assessment and infrastructure restoration. Comprehensive evaluations were conducted to refine the thresholds for future progressive services.

Conclusion This case illustrates that embedding early warnings into every node of the government decision-making chain and utilizing a high-level call-response mechanism to reach authorities with dispatching power is the core mechanism for maximizing disaster risk reduction (DRR) effectiveness.