Severe storms and a rare tornado swept across four cities in central China’s Hubei province on the night of July 6, killing at least 11 people, leaving one missing, and injuring 331, according to the provincial emergency management department.
The storms damaged 4,855 homes and destroyed 22 others, with the worst impacts reported in Huanggang, Ezhou, Huangshi, and Xianning.
According to China’s Xinhua News Agency, in Huanggang, where a tornado tore through the urban core, four people were killed, 178 were hospitalized with injuries, including five in critical condition, and one person remained missing. Neighboring Ezhou reported five deaths, 428 affected residents, 178 people relocated, and damage to 155 households. In Jinniu township in Daye, part of Huangshi, two people were killed and 51 injured.
The storm system struck between 8:00 and 11:00 p.m. on July 6. According to Xinhua News Agency, the Huanggang tornado, which hit between 8:10 and 8:30 p.m., was rated EF2 on the Enhanced Fujita scale, with winds exceeding level 15 on China’s wind-force scale.
Fu Shenming, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Atmospheric Physics, said the tornado was highly unusual because the funnel cloud formed over Ezhou before crossing the Yangtze River into Huanggang, a rare path across a major waterway. He added that Hubei is not typically considered a tornado-prone region.
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Residents describe homes torn apart and people swept away
Residents in Huanggang described scenes of extreme destruction as the tornado ripped through neighborhoods in minutes.
A resident identified by the pseudonym Li You told China News Weekly that he rushed to close his windows when the storm arrived shortly after 8:00 p.m., but the windows were blown out before he reached them. The roof of his three-story home was torn away, forcing him and his family to shelter in an interior room.
“It was over in three to five minutes,” Li said, describing collapsed homes, factories, offices, toppled trees, utility poles, and steel structures scattered throughout the area. Rescue teams arrived around 10:00 p.m. and moved his family to a nearby hotel.
In the same area, logistics park manager Wu told China News Weekly that his parents were killed after being lifted into the air by the tornado while sitting outside their home. He said he watched them rise roughly 100 meters before falling. His father’s body was recovered early on July 7, followed by his mother’s later that day.
A Huanggang resident surnamed Wang told the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald that his brother-in-law, surnamed Zhang, was pulled from his 12th-floor apartment in the Linglong Jiayuan residential complex by the force of the wind and fell into the landscaped area below. Zhang remains in intensive care.
Wang said the tornado stripped the building of its windows and interior furnishings, with cabinets, sofas, tables, and chairs blown away. “The whole building was hollowed out,” he said.
He added that Huanggang’s main hospital campus was overwhelmed by the influx of injured residents, with many patients treated in orthopedics and intensive care units.
Trucks thrown, university damaged in Huangzhou district
The tornado tore through residential communities, schools, and a logistics park in Huanggang’s Huangzhou district in about 20 minutes. Heavy trucks were reportedly thrown up to 30 meters, while debris, fallen trees, power lines, and damaged structures filled the storm’s path.
A shopkeeper surnamed Shao told China News Weekly that she was lifted off her feet and thrown through the air as the storm hit. She said tables outside her shop were blown away and destroyed, while flying metal debris injured people nearby.
The hardest-hit communities in Huangzhou district were Changjiang, Hongqiao, and Wangjiadun. By early July 7, Hongqiao reported 1,177 affected households, 50 injuries, and two deaths. Changjiang reported 404 damaged homes, 219 injuries, two deaths, and one missing person. Wangjiadun reported 92 damaged homes and six injuries.
The Huanggang municipal government said the storm affected 5,975 people in Huangzhou district, damaged about 1,000 mu (165 acres) of farmland, and caused direct economic losses of approximately 450 million yuan (about $63 million). More than 2,300 emergency personnel, including firefighters, police, and rescue workers, were deployed.
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Huangshi township reports 53 casualties
Jinniu township in Daye, under Huangshi’s administration, was struck by a tornado around 7:00 p.m. on July 6, according to Huangshi Release, the city government’s official media account.
The storm knocked out power, damaged homes and public facilities, and caused widespread destruction. By 5:30 a.m. on July 7, authorities reported two deaths and 51 injuries in the township. More than 900 rescue personnel were sent to Huangshi and Daye.
Citing Hubei’s emergency management department, reports said 53 townships across Huangshi, Huanggang, Ezhou, and Xianning experienced severe convective weather, with wind speeds reaching levels eight to 13 on China’s wind-force scale. Two townships recorded level 13 winds, while tornadoes were reported in several locations. A waterspout was also observed over Yuai Lake in Huanggang.
As of the morning of July 7, the storm system had affected 14,600 people across Hubei province, killing 11 and injuring 331.
Fu Shenming said tornadoes remain among the most difficult weather events to predict because they form and disappear quickly over small areas. He called for stronger building standards, improved risk assessments, and greater attention to tornado preparedness in future urban planning.
