Authorities in a mountainous Beijing suburb say they have repaired almost all of the bridges damaged by last year's deluge, and made them better able to withstand severe weather.

Nineteen of the capital's bridges were destroyed in the downpour in July.

As of Tuesday, 15 downed crossings in the city had been repaired and reopened, the Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport said in a statement.

Fourteen of the completed projects are in southwest Fangshan district, the area worst affected by the 2012 flood, with another one to be ready in early June, Jiao Haifeng, deputy director of the district highway bureau, told China Daily.

Qianhekou Bridge, which connects a key road to Shidu, a spot popular with tourists for its river and mountainous landscape, reopened before May 1.

Three of the other bridges to be repaired are in Fangshan and one is in Huairou district.

Jiao said that during last year's heavy rain authorities managed to evacuate 10,000 stranded tourists near Qianhekou Bridge, when floodwaters rose one meter over the surface of the bridge.

The standards for county-level roads have been revised to first-grade, to make sure they can withstand any repeat of last year's rain, he said.

A deluge hit the capital on July 21, killing 79 people, 40 of them in Fangshan.

Jiao said the reconstruction of bridges and roads will help the district to resume the development of tourism, especially in Shidu and other spots that link nearby Hebei province.

Tourist numbers dropped during the past May Day holiday, according to authorities. However, Jiao predicted that as more people learn about the improved transportation conditions in Fangshan, tourism will return to normal this year.

To face the flood season, the district set up many warning lights at key bridges and crossroads. Residents will also get timely warnings from information screens on roadsides, he said.

"The basic target of our work is to make sure repair projects will not be destroyed again in the coming flood season," Jiao said.

Fangshan will also set up a communication station, in cooperation with a telecommunication company, to help fight flooding.

The station, a first for Beijing, will connect flood control headquarters with lower departments, authorities said.

On Tuesday, the capital released a flood plan that will see the establishment of seven special headquarters headed by seven deputy mayors.

Wang Yi, head of the capital's flood control headquarters, said the goal is to prevent deaths caused by rainfall, Beijing Times reported.

The city will also launch a consultation system with nearby provinces and cities for flood control, according to the plan.

jinhaixing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 05/30/2013 page6)