One might be surprised to see Premier Li Keqiang standing in floodwaters that submerged part of the Yangtze River embankment.

But he actually did so on his impromptu visit to Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, which is notorious for its history of flooding. At the intersection of China's longest river and its tributary Hanjiang River, the rising water covered some parts of embankment, and Li decided to check out the potential danger.

The city suffers deluges almost every year and is seeing this summer the highest water level since 1998, when provinces along the Yangtze were devastated by lengthy downpours.