Staff members tie ropes between street lamps as warning in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, July 6, 2020. Several provincial-level regions have upgraded their flood response levels, as of Monday, after heavy rains swelled rivers and lakes in many parts of China. China's national observatory on Monday renewed its yellow alert for rainstorms, the second-lowest in the country's four-tier weather warning system, as incessant downpours continue to wreak havoc in many parts of China. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

Around 500 senior high school students sitting for the college entrance examination, or gaokao, were trapped in floods triggered by torrential rains in Huangmei county, Central China's Hubei Province, on Wednesday, prompting local authorities to use a forklift truck to bring them to safety. 

According to the Huangmei public security bureau, 500 students living at  Huaning Senior High School became trapped by the flood at 7 am, and water 1.6 meters deep blocked their way to the gaokao examination site on the second day of the exam. 

Local police dispatched a large forklift truck to transfer them, and as of press time, 300 of the trapped students had managed to get to the examination site. Local police estimated it would take another half an hour to move the remaining students to safety. 

Hubei upgraded its emergency response to rainstorms from grade IV to grade III on Sunday, as the province was forecast to experience heavy rains from Sunday to Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the first day of gaokao, several cities in Hubei including Wuhan, Huangshi and Jingzhou witnessed heavy rain. This year, around 400,000 Hubei candidates are sitting in gaokao. 

The torrential rains in Huangmei county also triggered a landslide that buried nine residents at around 4 am in one village, and local authorities have been trying to rescue them. The remaining 40 villagers were transferred to safe locations, local authorities said. 

Hubei gaokao candidates were not deterred by floods, and some candidates in South China's Yunnan Province managed to complete their tests during an earthquake. 

According to the Kunming city government, a 4.2-magnitude earthquake struck Yunnan on Wednesday morning, prompting about 100 candidates to flee their exam rooms. But seven minutes later, they were brought back to continue their exam. 

Teachers later conducted psychological consultations with affected students, and the exams will be continued on Wednesday afternoon, according to the Kunming government.

Global Times