Henan ramps up efforts to save cultural relics from extreme rains
国家文物局：确保河南受灾文物第一时间得到保护
All the cultural relics from the Longmen Grottoes have been well protected against the unprecedented heavy rainfall that hit Central China’s Henan Province in recent days causing 25 deaths as of Wednesday. Landslides occurred nearby archaeological sites, like Zhengzhou Shang City and the Shaolin Temple, amid extreme weather, but the cultural relics remained intact.
A number of major cities in Henan have been affected by the rains and some local museums and archaeological digging sites were flooded, according to a post by the National Cultural Heritage Administration on its official WeChat account.
A video posted on social media on Tuesday shows the Shaolin Temple on Mountain Songshan being hit by heavy floods after unusually heavy rains. All the scenic spots in the area were closed to the public.
Many splendid pieces of cultural and artistic highlights of ancient China have been discovered in Henan’s numerous archaeological sites.
The death toll has climbed to 25, with 7 missing in Zhengzhou on Wednesday. A total of 1.24 million residents have been affected in the province that has been ravaged by torrential rains with 160,000 being evacuated as rescue operations continue in the province, led by the People’s Liberation Army.
Local authorities in Henan also made calls to save the cultural relics with various measures, including water pumping and drainage operations and increased inspections, to make sure both cultural relics and people are safe.
记者21日从国家文物局获悉，河南省遭遇入汛以来最强一轮降雨天气，郑州市、洛阳市、巩义市、济源市、新乡市等文物单位密集地区遭受严重灾害，部分博物馆和考古工地有渗漏进水情况，多处全国重点文物保护单位、省级重点文物保护单位遭受不同程度水毁险情。郑州商城遗址、龙门石窟、嵩山少林寺等地覆土坍塌，但文物本体暂时安全。国家文物局决定动用文物突发事件应急处理项目资金，支持河南受灾文物应急、支护、抢险及勘察勘探等，确保受灾文物第一时间得到保护。
