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At Least 20 Killed, 19 Missing In China Rainstorms

Published

10 months ago

August 1, 2023

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At least 20 people were killed and 19 were missing after heavy rains lashed Beijing and surrounding provinces, state media said Tuesday, in downpours that have submerged roads and deluged neighbourhoods with mud.

Storm Doksuri, a former super typhoon, swept northwards over China after hitting southern Fujian province on Friday, following its battering of the Philippines.

Heavy rains began pummelling the capital and surrounding areas on Saturday, with nearly the average rainfall for the entire month of July dumped on Beijing in just 40 hours.

Swaths of suburban Beijing remain badly hit by the rains — some of the city’s heaviest in years.

On the banks of the Mentougou River, one of the worst affected areas, AFP reporters saw muddy debris strewn across the road.

One man told AFP he had not seen flooding this bad since July 2012, when 79 people were killed and tens of thousands evacuated.

“This time it’s much bigger than that,” he said, declining to give his name.

“It’s a natural disaster, there’s nothing you can do,” a 20-year-old man surnamed Qi, who was waiting for a taxi with his grandmother outside a hospital, told AFP.

“(We) still have to work hard and rebuild.”

On Tuesday, state broadcaster CCTV said that the rains had killed at least 11 people in Beijing, two of whom were workers “killed on duty during rescue and relief”.

Thirteen people were still missing, but another 14 had been found safe, the broadcaster said.

In neighbouring Hebei province, nine people were killed and six were missing, it said.

Another two casualties were reported in northeastern Liaoning province over the weekend.

President Xi Jinping on Tuesday called for “every effort” to rescue those “lost or trapped” by the rains.

More than 100,000 people deemed at risk across Beijing have been evacuated, according to the state-owned Global Times newspaper.

Authorities have allocated 110 million yuan ($15.4 million) for disaster relief work in the capital and surrounding provinces, CCTV said.

‘Endure what we can’

Florist Wang Yongkun, 62, had piled sandbags around the door of his shop, but the floor inside was still coated in mud.

He said in 15 years working there he had never experienced anything like the last few days.

“We started cleaning up in the afternoon yesterday… and woke up again at seven today to continue,” he said.

“You just have to deal with it… We will endure what we can.”

Further south in Fangshan district, the Dashi River had overflowed, with trees along the riverbank partially submerged, and some sections of the road cordoned off.

Roads were caked in mud, foliage and various debris, including an upturned armchair.

AFP reporters saw collapsed bridges at two locations, with locals saying the damage had happened during the rains.

Earlier social media videos tagged in Fangshan had shown multiple cars being swept along roads turned into fast-flowing streams.

Live images from broadcaster CCTV on Tuesday morning showed a row of buses half submerged in floodwater.

In the parking lot of a high-rise apartment complex, cars were piled on top of each other, alarms still sounding, while people lined up with buckets and other containers to collect fresh water.

Chaotic scenes

Local media on Monday published footage of chaotic scenes aboard high-speed rail trains stranded on tracks for as long as 30 hours, with passengers complaining that they had run out of food and water.

Authorities “must properly relocate affected people, work quickly to repair damaged transportation, communication, and electricity infrastructure, and restore the order of normal production and life as soon as possible”, Xi said on Tuesday.

The capital activated a flood control reservoir on Monday for the first time since it was built in 1998, the Beijing Daily said.

Parts of Hebei remain under red alert for rainstorms, with authorities warning of potential flash floods and landslides.

In Handan, Hebei province, rescuers lifted by crane reached a man trapped on top of his car in floodwaters, lifting him to safety before the car was flipped and washed away by the current.

China has been experiencing extreme weather and posting record temperatures this summer, events that scientists say are being exacerbated by climate change.

The country is already preparing for the arrival of typhoon Khanun, the sixth such storm of the year, as it nears China’s east coast.

AFP

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15 Most Expensive Nigerian Universities

Published

2 hours ago

May 19, 2024

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Credit: Wigwe University

Here are 15 most expensive universities in Nigeria as compiled by The PUNCH.

Wigwe University, Isiokpo, Rivers State, tops the list with a tuition fee of N12m, including accommodation fees.

Nile University, Abuja’s most expensive programme, Medicine and Surgery, costs N5.95m, according to the school’s website. Fees only cover tuition; accommodation is not included. Tuition for returning students is the same as stipulated in their admission letters.

Lead City University, also known as LCU, is a private university in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. Their MBBS Medicine and Surgery programme, according to the school’s website, costs N5.5m per session. Other expensive programmes are their Nursing, Dentistry, and Pharmacy programmes which cost N2.5m each per session.

Afe Babalola University, founded by legal luminary, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN), is another expensive university in the country. First-year students of Medicine are to pay N4,567,500 while final-year students will pay a total of N5,586,000. This excludes accommodation which costs N850,000 for the Super Deluxe one-person room, and other fees [Students Association fees, medical screening, ABUAD souvenir (fresh students)] which cost around N70,000.

Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos, charges between N3.9m to N4.4m for its most expensive programme, B.Eng Mechatronics. The fee covers reading materials, and academic facilities, among others. This does not include the non-refundable acceptance fee of N250,000 to be paid on admission.

Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, is Nigeria’s first private university, known for its commitment to quality education and academic excellence. According to the school’s website, final-year medical students can pay as much as N4m as tuition. This excludes other sundry levies.

Bowen University, Iwo, Osun State, a private Baptist Christian Nigerian university located at Iwo in Osun State, Nigeria, is also another university with expensive fees. It is affiliated with the Nigerian Baptist Convention. According to its website, the most expensive programme, the Medicine and Surgery (pre-clinical) programme, costs around N3.8m. Other Fees of N84,000 per session are made up of BBSF – N4,000, Entrepreneurship and Soft Skills – N20,000, Internet Access and Portal Management – N40,000, and Health Care – N20,000.

All new and returning students are required to pay N20,000 and N10,000 respectively to Bowen University Parents Association Forum in the first semester and present a receipt of the same for clearance. Also, 70 per cent payment of school fees is expected to be paid at the commencement of the session while the balance of 30 per cent is expected to be paid at the commencement of the second semester.

American University of Nigeria, Adamawa State, founded by former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, in Yola, the capital of his home state of Adamawa, North-East Nigeria, charges N3.511m as its highest fee for its undergraduate engineering students. This excludes accommodation which costs N432,000 for its triple-room apartment, and feeding which costs N813,960 for 21 meals.

Benson Idahosa University, Benin City, Edo State, is a private, Christian university. Previously named Christian Faith University, it was renamed in honour of the late Archbishop Benson Idahosa, a charismatic Pentecostal minister from Benin City, Nigeria, and is said to reflect his evangelical beliefs. Its Medicine and Surgery programme costs between N3.3m and N3.5m per session, according to its website. This is closely followed by its Nursing, Medical Laboratory Science, and Law programmes which cost N1.8m, N1.5m, and N1.2m respectively per session.

Babcock University, a private Christian co-educational Nigerian university owned and operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Nigeria, is located at Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria, equidistant between Ibadan in Oyo State and Lagos. The most expensive programme, which is the LL.B in Law programme, costs N1,539,990, according to the school’s website. This excludes feeding which costs N523,600 (two-meal option) or 785,400 (three-meal option).

Redeemer’s University is a private university in Ede, Osun State, and prides itself as one of the most cost-effective, top private universities in Nigeria. Their fee structure, according to their website, is flexible and can be paid in three installments. The most expensive programme, which is their undergraduate Law programme, costs N1.447m followed by their Bachelor in Nursing programme which costs N1.1m per session.

Caleb University, Imota, Lagos, is a private university that is also one of the most expensive in the country. The highest fee, paid by law undergraduates, costs N1.4m, according to the fee tracker available on its website. This excludes matriculation fees, ICT and global certification, and parents forum which cost N65,000 in total.

Ajayi Crowther University, founded in 2005, is a private faith-based university located in Oyo State, Nigeria. Its Law programme costs N1.7m while its Nursing programme costs N1.4m.

Joseph Ayo Babalola University is a private Nigerian university located in Ikeji-Arakeji, Osun State, Nigeria, established in 2004 by the Christ Apostolic Church Worldwide. The most expensive programmes are the BSc Nursing, Medical Laboratory Technology, and Law programmes which cost between N1.3m and N1.5m each per session.

Covenant University, Otta, Ogun State, affiliated with the Living Faith Church Worldwide, is a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities, Association of African Universities, and National Universities Commission, and is one of the most expensive universities in the country. Most of the university’s programmes range between N1.1m to N3m, according to the university’s website. This includes feeding but excludes accommodation.

Notable mentions include Achievers University, Novena University, Adeleke University, Rhema University, Lagos State University, Obong University, and Oduduwa University.

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JUST IN: Helicopter Carrying Iran’s President Crashes

Published

4 hours ago

May 19, 2024

Editor

A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has been involved in an incident while he was visiting neighboring Azerbaijan, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reports.

“Some of the president’s companions on this helicopter were able to communicate with Central Headquarters, raising hopes that the incident could have ended without casualties,” it added.

It is unclear what the exact status is of Raisi’s helicopter.

The helicopter was part of a convoy of three helicopters. Two of those helicopters were carrying ministers and officials who arrived at their destination safely, according to Tasnim.

“Seyyed Mohammad-Ali Al-Hashem, Tabriz’s Friday Prayer Imam, and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were also reportedly on the helicopter with the president,” Tasnim said on X.

More Details Later…

Headline

Iran Hangs 53-year-old Woman, Six Others

Published

23 hours ago

May 18, 2024

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Iran on Saturday hanged at least seven people, including two women, while a member of its Jewish minority is at imminent risk of execution as the Islamic Republic further intensified its use of capital punishment, an NGO said.

Parvin Mousavi, 53, a mother of two grown-up children, was hanged in Urmia prison in northwestern Iran along with five men convicted in various drug-related cases, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) said in a statement.

In Nishapur in eastern Iran, a 27-year-old woman named Fatemeh Abdullahi was hanged on charges of murdering her husband, who was also her cousin, it said.

IHR says it has tallied at least 223 executions this year, with at least 50 so far in May alone. A new surge began following the end of Persian New Year and Ramadan holidays in April, with 115 people including six women hanged since then, it said.

Iran carries out more recorded executions of women than any other country. Activists say many such convicts are victims of forced or abusive marriages.

Iran last year carried out more hangings than in any year since 2015, according to NGOs, which accuse the Islamic republic of using capital punishment as a means to instill fear in the wake of protests that erupted in autumn 2022.

“The silence of the international community is unacceptable,” IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam told AFP.

“Those executed belong to the poor and marginalised groups of Iranian society and didn’t have fair trials with due process.”

‘Killing machine’

IHR said Mousavi had been in prison for four years. It cited a source as saying she had been paid the equivalent of 15 euros to carry a package she had been told contained medicine but was in fact five kilos of morphine.

“They are the low-cost victims of the Islamic Republic’s killing machine, which aims at instilling fear among people to prevent new protests,” added Amiry-Moghaddam.

The group meanwhile said a member of Iran’s Jewish community, which has drastically reduced in numbers in recent years but is still the largest in the Middle East outside Israel, was at imminent risk of execution over a murder charge.

Arvin Ghahremani, 20, was convicted of murder during a street fight when he was 18 and is scheduled to be executed in the western city of Kermanshah on Monday, it said, adding it had received an audio message from his mother Sonia Saadati asking for his life to be spared.

His family is seeking to ask the family of the victim to forgo the execution in line with Iran’s Islamic law of retribution, or qesas.

Also at risk of execution is Kamran Sheikheh, the last surviving member of a group of seven Iranian Kurdish men who were first arrested between early December 2009 and late January 2010 and later sentenced to death for “corruption on earth” over alleged membership of extremist groups, it said.

Six men convicted in the same case have been executed in the last months almost one-and-a-half decades after their initial arrest, the last being Khosro Besharat who was hanged in Ghezel Hesar prison outside Tehran this week.

There has been an international outcry meanwhile over the death sentence handed out last month to Iranian rapper Toomaj Salehi, seen by activists as retaliation for his music backing the 2022 protests. His lawyers are appealing the verdict.

AFP