From a 1,300 statue under threat of being submerged to houses swept away by mudslides and dramatic rescues of stranded civilians, some of the worst flooding seen in decades has wreaked havoc across the Chinese province of Sichuan following heavy rains.
The toes of the 71-metre Buddha statue in Leshan were submerged in water on Tuesday, August 18, the first time that has happened in 70 years, state media reported.
The threat to the statue, built in 713 AD, is just one example of how the vast floods are threatening lives, infrastructure and heritage.
Heavy rains since the weekend have triggered flooding across China’s Sichuan Province, forcing authorities to activate the highest level of a four-tier flood alert system for the first time on record, while parts of the provincial capital Chengdu have been hit by the worst flooding since 1981, authorities said.
The floods have triggered mudslides that have destroyed homes and property and the rising waters have devastated swathes of farmland.
More than 100,000 people had been evacuated as of Tuesday while emergency services have rescued hundreds of people trapped by the flooding, say authorities.
Rescue efforts have not just been limited to the region's human population. Amateur footage captured the moment firefighters rushed to save a number of dogs from a pet hospital in Chengdu on Friday.
More than 63.4 million have been affected by flooding in regions across China this year, according to authorities, with the country being battered by unusually heavy rains since early June.
A total of 219 people have died or remain missing as of August 13.
