Prateek Tanmay
2 min readNew DelhiJul 20, 2026 10:02 AM IST
A man in southern China swam through dangerous floodwaters for hours to check on and rescue his parents after losing contact with them during devastating floods.
According to a report in the South China Morning Post, the incident took place on July 6 at Qinzhou, in China’s Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, which has been battered by torrential rain and dam collapses. The floods have reportedly claimed 39 lives and affected nearly 400,000 residents.
The 30-year-old man, identified only by his surname Xie, decided to swim after failing to reach his parents by phone. His mother had called him the previous night to say that his 63-year-old father had gone to secure harvested rice stored in their flooded home but had not returned. Soon after, power outages caused by the rising waters disrupted mobile networks, leaving the family unable to communicate.
Man swam for three hours
Xie, who lives in town with his two siblings while their parents remain in the village about 10 km away, spent the night worrying that his father might have been swept away by the flood.
Determined to reach them, Xie and a friend bought two truck tyres to use as flotation devices. They swam through floodwaters for nearly three hours, with the final kilometre alone taking about an hour to cross, the news report added.
Father trapped in flood
When they arrived, they found Xie’s father trapped on the upper floor of the family’s flooded house, where he had been trying to save harvested rice. Although relieved to see his son, the elderly man reportedly scolded Xie for risking his life over property.
Xie then led his father along a narrow path behind the house to a second family home located on higher ground, which had escaped the flooding. His mother broke down upon seeing him soaked from the journey and also reprimanded him for putting himself in danger.
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After ensuring both his parents were safe, Xie returned to the city later the same day, swimming another two hours through the floodwaters, the report further stated.
