Expo authorities brace park for rainy weather

• Source: Global Times
• [10:23 July 13 2010]
• Comments

By Craig Curtis

As floods inundate southern China, officials at the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai are making safety preparations for the rains forecast to hit the east of the country this week.

In the second half of June, the rainiest day in the Expo Park saw rainfall of 30 millimeters, People's Daily reported Monday, while the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau announced that temperatures are expected to heat up through to Friday, with a predicted high of 36 C.

Between 8 am and 4 pm on Sunday, Xujiahui recorded 6.6 millimeters of rainfall, while Chongming county recorded 15 millimeters, Oriental Morning Post reported Monday.

The coming bad weather has prompted Expo authorities to make preparations, such as installing anti-skid stripping along elevated pedestrian walkways. Monday, anti-skid stripping layers spaced 30 centimeters apart had been laid along elevat-ed walkways on both the Pudong and Puxi sides of the Expo Park. Workers were also tearing up slippery tiles to provide a higher-traction surface.

As of the end of June, around 70 Expo visitors had been admitted to medical stations in the Expo Park after slipping over on walkways in Zone C of the Pudong Expo site, while around 10 visitors had sought medical attention after slipping in Zone E in Puxi, deputy director Dr Chen Minmin from Ruijin Hospital told the Wenhui Daily earlier this month.

"We hope that all the sites of slipping incidents will be reported by the media and that the Expo Bureau will erect warning signs to remind the public to tread with care, especially when it rains," Chen said.