President calls for bolstering post-disaster recovery

President Xi Jinping stressed on Friday the need to bolster post-disaster recovery and reconstruction and guarantee the well-being of the people, while inspecting areas hit by summer floods and geological disasters in Beijing and neighboring Hebei province.

He called on local authorities to ensure that the people in the two regions can stay warm in the coming winter, while visiting disaster-affected villages, households, a school and water conservancy projects.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, urged accelerated steps in strengthening weak areas and building up flood prevention engineering systems and emergency management systems, and enhancing disaster prevention, reduction and relief capabilities.

The two areas were ravaged by floods caused by Typhoon Doksuri, which left at least 33 people dead in Beijing and at least 29 people dead in Hebei.

He made instructions on several occasions calling for all-out search and rescue efforts after the floods, calling for authorities to ensure proper treatment of those injured and provide comfort to the families of the victims.