Sources at the Tianjin Water Authority said significant investment has been made in projects, including the expansion of pumping stations along the Duliujian River, dredging and clearance work in the Yongding River's floodplain areas, and improvements to the drainage network in downtown areas.

Expansion of part of a pumping station on the Duliujian River is expected to increase the water flow from 44 cubic meters per second to 60 cu m. In addition, 9,751 meters of drainage pipelines in downtown Tianjin will be renovated.

Qiao Jianhua, director of the Haihe River Water Conservancy Commission, which reports to the Ministry of Water Resources, emphasized the valuable lessons learned from the flooding in the summer and underlined the crucial role played by water conservation facilities.

The importance of prompt forecasting, prevention work, and action plans to address the challenges posed by flooding was also stressed by Qiao.

Looking ahead, he said the authorities need to address problems related to flooding, improve water catchment facilities, accelerate the construction of reservoirs and work on renovating dams and waterways.

Qiao also acknowledged shortcomings in the forecasting capabilities for the Taihang and Yanshan mountains, and hopes that facilities in these areas will be upgraded.

"To ensure the safety of local residents, increased efforts are needed to implement prevention measures and improve infrastructure in risky mountainous areas, water catchment areas, and regions prone to frequent torrential downpours," he said.

Yang Zishuo contributed to this story.