Rumors swirl over flooding death toll in Beijing

Residents impatient for official updates compiled their own death tolls Thursday for last weekend's massive flooding in Beijing and snapped up survival gear following new forecasts of rain, reflecting deep mistrust of the government's handling of the disaster.          

The city government has not issued new death toll figures since Sunday, the day after Beijing's biggest downpour in 61 years overwhelmed drainage systems, swamped downtown underpasses and sent flash floods roiling through the city's outskirts.          

Beijing says 37 people were killed, but state media reports Thursday said the toll could be as high as 61 and online rumors put it in the hundreds.         
Officials have kept a tight lid on information, mindful that any failure to cope with the flooding could undermine the country's leadership as it undergoes a once-a-decade transition, with Beijing city leaders a part of that reshuffling. China's communist government has justified its one-party rule in part by delivering economic growth and maintaining stability in the face of bubbling unrest and periodic mass disasters like Saturday's flooding.          

AP