Chongqing - Heavy rain, hail, and gale-force winds swept parts of Chongqing over the past two days, triggering emergency responses during the city’s first widespread rainstorm of the year, days after the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) official described its advanced early warning system as an example of how data and technology support decision-making in a complex megacity.
Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization, visits the Chongqing Meteorological Bureau during a research trip in Chongqing, China, on April 16, 2026. (Photo/Luo Huxin)
This overlap between a real storm event and a high-level international assessment adds weight to the questions raised by Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General of the WMO, during her recent interview with Bridging News in Chongqing.
Lightning streaks across the night sky over Chongqing Liangjiang New Area, on April 19, 2026. (Photo/Liu Li)
By late evening on April 19, severe convective weather had affected parts of western Chongqing, including Yongchuan, Jiangjin, Bishan, and the central urban area, with the heaviest hourly rainfall reaching 48.2 mm in Bishan’s Shapo Village between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., winds exceeding force 10 recorded in Jiangjin, and hail reported earlier in Zhongshan Town.
Chongqing activated a Level IV flood-control response in 15 districts and development zones, and as conditions worsened, 21 districts and counties issued coordinated warnings, triggering responses across 283 towns and subdistricts, with satellite alerts sent to 645 townships and rescue teams placed on standby.
For Saulo, Chongqing is worth watching precisely because it sits at the intersection of geographic complexity and urban scale. She said the city's system stood out for its combination of several techniques, including multiple data sources, innovation, and products tailored for both the public and specialized users. She also said Chongqing offers a useful reference point for other fast-growing cities, particularly in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America, even though their geographies differ.
Her central argument was that early warning is not only about forecasting. It is about whether technical information can be turned into something people understand and act on.
Saulo said the key challenge is turning technical forecasts into actionable information rather than just producing them, adding that an effective warning system relies on four connected elements: observations, forecast quality, communication, and response capacity, while noting that communication remains the weakest link, especially when complex weather risks must be explained to the public in clear and practical terms.
On April 16, 2026, staff at the Chongqing Meteorological Bureau briefed Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization, on the city’s digital and intelligent meteorological system. (Photo/Luo Huxin)
That point is particularly relevant in Chongqing, where local authorities have been trying to move beyond single weather alerts and embed meteorological warnings into city management and emergency response.
“Be prepared, not alarmed”
Saulo said the international value of a case like Chongqing lies in how tons of information are combined to support decisions in an urban environment where infrastructure, traffic, people, hydrology, weather, and climate all interact at high speed. In such settings, she said, cities cannot afford to leave relevant weather and climate information out of planning and decision-making.
She placed Chongqing's experience within the broader "Early Warnings for All" initiative, which aims to ensure everyone on Earth is protected by early warning systems by the end of 2027.
Saulo said around 60% of the world reports having a multi-hazard early warning system. She called that progress, but added that the world is still not adequately prepared as extreme events become more frequent and more intense. The biggest resource gaps remain in least developed and developing countries, she said, though she also argued that the broader exposure to extreme weather is now global.
On China's role, Saulo pointed to clear support for people-centered early warning systems, as well as the country's satellite capabilities, technical innovation, and willingness to share MAZU.
WMO has described MAZU as a China-backed initiative under Early Warnings for All, designed to build an early warning service network and share practical experience and technological achievements with global partners. Saulo said the system could be deployed in many countries and could play an especially important role in support of the Global South.
The MAZU case also helps explain why meteorology in Chongqing is being treated as more than a public-safety tool. MAZU weather products were launched in Chongqing in December 2025 to support the China-Europe Railway Express, a freight network connecting China with Europe and Central Asia. The report said trains along the route face sharply different weather risks, from severe thunderstorms and sandstorms to snowfall and visibility loss.
That makes Chongqing relevant not only as a city exposed to storms, but also as a logistics and industrial hub in western China where weather risk affects transport, supply chains, and daily operations.
And it helps explain why Saulo's closing message was so direct: "be prepared." For the public, she said, it is better to act on a warning and have nothing happen than to ignore it and lose a life. If a warning says stay home, stay home. If it says leave, leave. As Chongqing moved this weekend from forecast to response, that message no longer sounded abstract.