Chongqing authorities say cloud seeding to break heatwave did not cause winds that sent laundry flying

It was the talk of the town. After the authorities sought to break a long-running heatwave in Chongqing by using cloud-seeding missiles to artificially bring rain, the Chinese megacity was blasted by an unusual weather event – an underwear storm.

Termed “the 9/2 Chongqing underwear crisis”, an unexpected windstorm on Monday brought gusts of up to 76mph (122km/h), scattering people’s laundry from balconies on the city’s high-rises. Douyin, China’s sister app to TikTok, was filled with videos of pants and bras flying through the skies, landing in the street and snagging on trees.

“I just went out and it suddenly started to rain heavily and underwear fell from the sky,” one resident, Ethele, posted on the social media platform Weibo.

“Who’s going to compensate me for my emotional damage?” joked one person who lost their brand new Calvin Klein set.

Another countered: “It’s actually quite romantic. You might even pick up your crush’s underwear while taking a walk on the street.”

One man bereft of his underwear said he was “laughing like crazy” but the rain storm in Chongqing had now turned him into a “lifelong introvert”.

  • Zip2@feddit.ukEnglish
    1·
    6 days ago

    What about the rest of the washing? Or do the Chinese have days where they only air their smalls? So many questions.

  • TimeNaan@lemmy.worldEnglish
    141·
    8 days ago

    I read that as “underwater”, had to do a double take.

    It did not make things any clearer.

    • Buddahriffic@lemmy.worldEnglish
      71·
      8 days ago

      Yeah, the actual story wasn’t as interesting as what I initially thought it would be, making the same mistake you did. I really had no idea what it was going to be and was disappointed when I realized it was just people’s laundry blowing around.

      Though those winds were pretty high and it makes me wonder if the underwear storm story is being used to distract from widespread damage and injury/death as a result of the CCP’s weather engineering attempt.

      Had a freak storm pop up with winds lower than those reported here and it caused a huge mess in a large region. I got lucky and the tree I watched get blown over went away from the house I was in instead of towards it.

      • TimeNaan@lemmy.worldEnglish
        24·
        8 days ago

        Now it’s CCP weather engineering… anything but accepting climate change

        • Buddahriffic@lemmy.worldEnglish
          5·
          7 days ago

          Using cloud seeding missiles isn’t weather engineering?

          Though the windstorm could have been coincidental to the cloud seeding. I assumed they were connected and climate change amplified the effect.

      • SoJB@lemmy.mlEnglish
        27·
        8 days ago

        Americans will believe in literally anything and then turn around and say they’re not propagandized at all