Local people row boats in flooded
Daoshui Town of Wuzhou City, southwest China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous
Region, June 16, 2008. As of Monday evening, flood has affected 92
counties, cities and regions in Guangxi. Some 7.54 million people were
plagued by the flood with direct economic loss standing at about 4.6
billion RMB yuan (660 million U.S. dollars). (Xinhua/Zhou
Hua) Photo
Gallery>>>
GUANGZHOU, June 16 (Xinhua) -- South China's
Guangdong Province was facing the threat of serious flooding as two swollen
rivers converged in the Pearl River Delta on Monday, resulting in a flood
equivalent to a worst in 50 years.
The runoff in Xijiang River was 46,800 cubic meters
per second and in Beijiang River 15,200 cubic meters per second before they met
each other in Foshan City, according to the Guangdong provincial headquarters of
flood control and drought relief, which said this was far higher than normal.
The danger of serious flooding is made worse by the
pull from the moon, which is rising to its most powerful point in the month on
Wednesday, posing a threat for river embankments across the delta, experts said.
More rains were forecast in the upstream areas of
Xijiang and Beijiang Rivers in next two days.
The Guangdong provincial flood control headquarters
on Monday ordered local governments to reinforce river embankments in nine
cities, including Guangzhou and to prepare to evacuate people in danger.
Two buffaloes swim in the Pearl River in
Sanshui City, south China's Guangdong Province, June 16, 2008. The first
flood peak of the Pearl River passed the Makou hydrometric station in
Sanshui on Monday. The water level at the station reached 8.26 meters,
0.76 meters higher than the alert level. (Xinhua/Zhuang Jin) Photo Gallery>>>
The Pearl River Delta is a major manufacturing base
of the country, while Guangdong posted a gross domestic product (GDP) of more
than 2.59 trillion yuan (375 billion U.S. dollars) in 2006, ranking the first on
the Chinese mainland.
Recent rainstorms and floods have affected 5.76
million people in 17 cities in Guangdong, including 20 deaths and eight missing
persons.
Continuous downpours had cut seven national highways
and 68 provincial ones in Guangdong, causing an economic loss of 600 million
yuan. Seven provincial highways remained paralyzed on Monday while the others
have been repaired.
At least 57 people have been killed and 1.27 million
people relocated as rainstorms and floods ravaged nine provinces and region in
south China and affected 17.87 million people, authorities said on Sunday.
Photo taken on June 16, 2008 shows the
cracks on the side slope of State Highway No. 321 in Congjiang County,
southwest China's Guizhou Province. Immediate survey and preliminary
proposal were carried out by the highway administration bureau of Kaili
City and local government as soon as cracks were discovered on the side
slope after recent heavy rainfall. (Xinhua/Chen Peiliang) Photo Gallery>>>
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region bordering Guangdong
on Monday also ordered two cities along the Xijiang River to reinforce
embankments as heavy rains continued.
More than 70,000 people were relocated on Monday in
Guangxi, bringing the total number of relocated people to 916,000. More than 7.5
million people have been affected as of 6 p.m. Monday, the regional civil
affairs department said.
Storms hit 12 towns in southern parts of Guizhou
Province on Sunday and Monday, leaving more than 400 houses inundated and crops
damaged.
Hunan Province to the north of Guangdong on Monday
claimed victory in fighting the first flood in the province this year with the
flood crest passing the provincial capital of Changsha safely, despite two
monitoring stations recorded highest water level in the history.
One people died and another was missing in Hunan's
flood, which also toppled down houses and cut off roads.
BEIJING, June 16 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu stressed on Monday that south China was at a critical moment in the fight against flood and local authorities should continue to take effective measures in order to minimize the loss of life and wealth.
Hui, also the commander-in-chief for the nation's headquarters for fight against flooding and drought, told an urgently-called meeting that all related departments and local authorities in southern China should fully realize the utmost importance of successfully fighting flooding this year. Full story
BEIJING, June 15 (Xinhua) -- At least 57 people have been
killed and 1.27 million people relocated as rainstorms and floods ravaged nine
provinces and region in south China, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs
and Guangdong Province on Sunday.
The Ministry of Civil Affairs said 55 people were killed
and another seven people were reported missing as of 9 p.m. on Saturday. A total
of 17.87 million people have been affected. Full story
BEIJING, June 15 (Xinhua) --
Torrential rain has taken a rising toll in southern China, affecting millions of
people.
Heavy rain started on June 8 in the Guangxi Zhuang
Autonomous Region and triggered landslides, mud-rock flows and floods, affecting
more than 6.8 million people and forcing the evacuation of 838,800, said the
Guangxi civil affairs department. Full story
WUZHOU, Guangxi, June 15 (Xinhua) -- A section of the
Xijiang River in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region was about to
burst its embankments following days of heavy rain, threatening tens of
thousands of people, local authorities said Sunday. Full story
BEIJING, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Heavy rains were forecast for
most parts of already-drenched southern China over the next 10 days, and some
areas could experience torrential rains, strong gales and thunderstorms, the
China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said on Sunday. Full story
