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Authorities issue warning as Yangtze River branch swells

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-07-23 22:55

WUHAN/XI'AN - Authorities in two Chinese provinces traversed by the Hanjiang River, the largest branch of the swollen Yangtze River, issued fresh flood warnings Friday.

The Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters in central Hubei Province said areas along the Hanjiang River will face severe floods.

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Pressure is building at the Danjiangkou reservoir, which is already dealing with the worst flooding of the year so far.

The water level in the reservoir had risen to 150.74 meters by Friday, about 1.74 meters above the warning line, and is expected to rise to 152 meters before the end of the month.

Engineers at the reservoir more than doubled the flow rate of water from 1,920 cubic-meters per second to 5,000 cubic-meters per second.

Along the upper reaches of the Hanjiang River in Shaanxi Province, floods and landslides had left at least 73 people dead and 121 missing as of Friday noon, the provincial government said.

About 213,000 residents from 24 counties and districts in the cities of Hanzhong, Ankang and Shangluo in southern Shaanxi have been evacuated. More than 60,000 houses have been destroyed or damaged.

A new round of rainstorms began to pound the region Thursday. Between 20 to 80 millimeters of rain has fallen, raising water levels in the Hanjiang River.

Authorities in Shaanxi have ordered disaster relief agencies and government departments evacuate flood-threatened residents as soon as possible.

Floods in China this year had left 742 people dead and 367 missing as of 9:00 am Friday.