National Natural Disaster Situation Released for May 2026: Four Characteristics

The Ministry of Emergency Management recently announced the national natural disaster situation for May 2026. In May, natural disasters in China were mainly floods and geological disasters, wind and hail disasters, and earthquake disasters, with drought as well as lowtemperature rain, snow, freezing, and snow disasters also having some impact. Preliminary statistics show that all types of disasters affected 6.609 million people nationwide to varying degrees, left 95 people dead or missing, required emergency relocation and resettlement or emergency basic living assistance for 335,000 people, and caused direct economic losses of 20.08 billion yuan. The notice pointed out that total nationwide rainfall in May was above normal, and in some parts of the south, rainfall showed characteristics of strong local extremes. Flood and geological disasters were more prominent in Hunan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Guangdong, Guangxi, and other places. Wind and hail disasters mainly affected parts of the northeast and southwest, while overall losses from lowtemperature rain, snow, freezing, and snow disasters were relatively light. At the same time, seismic activity on the Chinese mainland increased somewhat, with swarm activity occurring in Liuzhou, Guangxi, and an earthquake also striking Tuokxun County, Xinjiang. In addition, as widespread rainfall unfolded, drought conditions in Inner Mongolia, Yunnan, and other places eased somewhat, and the overall situation regarding forest and grassland fires nationwide remained stable. In May, there were 2 forest fires nationwide and no grassland fires.