Viral photos of heavy-duty drones rescuing China’s flood victims spark debate

Photos and discussions about China’s recent use of heavy-duty drones to “airlift” villagers affected by flooding in Guangxi have gone viral but almost two decades ago, the disaster-prone country once relied on risky, low-tech means to fight natural calamities.China’s rapid tech advancement, represented by the development and deployment of drones, has helped it better handle emergencies, such as how first responders have been rescuing residents from widespread rainstorms and floods since June.In the southern Guangxi-zhuang-autonomous-region" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="44530" data-entity-type="location">Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, swarms of drones carried out quick surveys of inundated areas and identified those still trapped, as local authorities raced against time to save people earlier this month. In some dramatic cases, drones were seen deployed in aerial extractions of stranded residents from rooftops or out of harm’s way.