Say what?! Indoor pool venue in hot water for promoting swimming lessons during floods

29 July 2021 - 12:00 By cebelihle bhengu
subscribe Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package.
Subscribe now
A dog stands on a flood barrier in a village in Xinxiang, Henan province, China.
A dog stands on a flood barrier in a village in Xinxiang, Henan province, China.
Image: Aly Song/Reuters

As floods continue to ravage Hebi and other parts of China, a natatorium ruffled some feathers and was fined for advertising swimming lessons.

“Now that Hebi is underwater aren't you going to learn swimming?," read the advertisement according to Global Times.

The advert was posted on the business's WeChat account on July 21 but has since been taken down after a, uh, flood of complaints from residents who found it offensive. 

The venue was fined 200,000 yuan (about R453,000) for using the natural disaster for marketing purposes. Hebi is one of the areas affected by downpours which have led to the destruction of infrastructure and deaths of about 69 people, according to Flood List

Other areas hard hit by the heavy rains include Zhengzhou, Xinyang, Xinxiang, Zhumadian, Zhoukou, Anyang, Shangqiu, Kaifeng and Puyang.

According to Reuters, large parts of China's central Henan province experienced heavy rains last week with its capital Zhengzhou hardest-hit after being drenched in the heaviest rain in 1,000 years, according to weather experts.

A video shared by Al Jazeera shows cars submerged underwater and emergency services rescuing residents. It reported damage to infrastructure has resulted in a lack of fresh running water and electricity outages.

Many modes of transport including buses and subways have been cancelled. 


subscribe Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package.
Subscribe now