Villagers walk on a section of a provincial road damaged by flooding in Jianhe county, Guizhou. Chen Peiliang / for China Daily

Elderly most at risk

Another challenge lies in the country's rapid urbanization, which has seen young rural residents move to the towns and cities in search of work and has resulted in many elderly village dwellers being left without family care.

"Elderly people and children are the groups that require the most help in times of flooding," Wei said. The outflow of young people has also resulted in a shortage of rescue teams in rural areas, he said.

According to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, nearly 50 million elderly rural residents face problems as a result of their children leaving home.

The problem hasn't gone unnoticed in Nongzhuang village, where many members of the younger generation have moved away. Zhao's son and daughter are typical, having both moved to cities in the east of the country in search of work and higher living standards.

"The flood has made the old waterways even more dangerous because the old river banks have been destroyed. I don't know what will happen if another flood strikes," Zhao said.

Yang Xianzhong, head of Xingxi, a village in Yanshan township in Guiding, said that every time the local river floods, officials and volunteers have to check every household to ensure that no one has been left behind.

"Loudspeakers, text messages and even gongs - we've tried all possible measures to warn residents. But some elderly people don't use cellphones, and are unable to hear the messages broadcast over the loudspeakers, either," he said.

The river that runs in front of the mountain village floods two or three times every year. On June 8, the village saw the biggest flood in its history when the river burst its banks after just three hours of continuous rain. The water rose more than 1.5 meters above the usual level, and although there were no reports of deaths or injuries, the deluge caused immense damage to farmland and crops.

Yang said the village is applying for national funds to raise the defenses to a level that would resist a "once-in-20-years flood", but admitted that in a worst-case scenario, the village would be defenseless: "This is the best thing we can do right now. If we come across floods even bigger than that, we will just have to make way for nature."

Yang Zhaohui, chief engineer with the Guizhou Province Department of Water Resources, said it simply isn't possible to improve the flood-prevention measures on every small river in the province.

"We have to measure our input and output because we only have limited financial resources. It's not possible for us to improve the defenses of every township to a level where every place is able to resist the impact of a 'once-in-a-100-years' flood. Even if we did, what if a '200-year flood' struck later?" he said.

"At present, our best option is to warn the residents in time and save their lives. Loss of property can always be remedied, but loss of life cannot."

Contact the writer at xuwei@chinadaily.com.cn