Heavy rain and floods bring renewed calls in China for "sponge cities"

People brave heavy rain and walk out of a subway station on a rainy day in Beijing on Monday, June 27, 2022. - AFP

BEIJING, June 27 (Reuters): Heavy rain has lashed more than 10 cities in the Chinese province of Shandong since the weekend, inundating streets, disrupting traffic and renewing calls for better drainage in built-up areas where concrete and asphalt trap water.

The weather bureau issued thunderstorm alerts on Monday as vehicles in the northeastern province were stranded in waist-deep water, a video posted on the Weibo social media site showed.