China floods: did Zhengzhou’s ‘smart’ flood prevention system fail to prevent the disaster?
- Two high-profile smart city projects in Zhengzhou, one for flood management and another for tunnel safety, have been singled out for criticism
- Analysts say other factors, such as local government coordination and the design capacity of systems, also need to be examined as part of investigation
Zhengzhou’s much-hyped smart city systems, which were supposed to help planners with urban management and safety, have come under heavy scrutiny after recent floods wreaked havoc with city infrastructure and caused dozens of deaths.
Two high-profile smart city projects in Zhengzhou, a city of 10 million people in central China, have been singled out for criticism after record rainstorms battered Henan province last week, causing at least 66 deaths, including 14 in the local subway system and six in the Jingguang Road Tunnel.
One of the technologies concerned is a real-time flood prevention system installed in the city last December by the Aerospace Shenzhou Smart System Technology Co, an affiliate of the state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation for Zhengzhou.
According to official statements, the system is designed to help the municipal authority monitor water levels in real time through sensors and “intelligent analysis” and notify relevant departments of incoming dangers. It has access to databases from several local bureaus, including big data on meteorology, hydrology and other relevant fields.
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Zhengzhou residents mourn subway flood victims in China’s central Henan province
The other technology is a monitoring system for the Jingguang Road Tunnel, installed as part of the city’s 2020 initiative to keep an eye on tunnel safety.
