Holding a piece of instant noodle in his hand, Zhang Zixue, 70, seemed resigned about the flood that destroyed his clay house in Wangjiaba.

The sluices gate of the Wangjiaba section of the Huaihe River, one of China's major rivers, were opened at 1 am on July 3 to divert the river's surging flood waters caused by heavy rainfall. It closed at 6 am on July 5, after the heavy rains stopped for several hours and the water level dropped to 28.91 metres, 0.09 metres below the safety line.

Zhang is among the 150,000 people who live in the Mengwa Flood Dviersion Area in Funan. Altogether, 19,142 people who live on lower ground have been directly affected by the diversion and altogether 12,000 hectares of farmland have been submerged.

"I can understand why the sluice gates were opened. If not, people on the upper reaches would face a serious threat,'' Zhang said.

With help from three local militia soldiers and the village head, Zhang said that most of his valuables, as well as his livestock -- including ducks, chickens and pigs -- were moved to safe places before the sluice gates were opened.

Zhang and his 70-year-old wife Wang Zhaolan are now living in a camp built by the local government, where flour, rice, coal and drinking water are provided daily.

"We have tried every means to ensure the people's safety and minimize their property losses,'' said Yang Wenjiu, the vice-director of the local flood-control headquarters, who has had little opportunity to rest in the past few days.

Yang said they went all out to arrange the emergency relief work and make the flood diversion proceed smoothly. Although tired, he and his colleagues felt pleased that no one has been injured or killed.

Tons of flour and rices has been delivered to 75 villages in the diversion areas by boats and hundreds of camps have been built on higher ground in the diversion areas.

For those whose houses have collapsed or were submerged by water, Yang said, they had been ordered to live on the higher ground to avoid possible flood damage.But since it has been years since there had any floods on the Huaihe River, local people have gradually moved to lower ground.

"About 20 per cent of the people who lost their homes are living in camps, the rest are living in the homes of their relatives and friends,'' said Yang. "Local people have prepared some food before the arrival of the flood and, with the extra food the local government has provided, they will have enough for at least one month.''

Disease control and prevention in the diversion area is now the major concern of the local government, said Yang.

About 80 doctors, including eight from the city of Fuyang, eight from Funan County and village doctors are now in charge of the daily medical treatment and check-ups in the diversion areas.

"These two-person teams went to each village by boat to check the health conditions of the people here every day,'' said Zhou Hongxiang, a doctor from the Fuyang People's Hospital.

Staff from the local disease control and prevention centres (CDC) are closely tracing and inspecting the possible spread of diseases. "No infected diseases appear to be spreading in the area,'' Zhang Chunfen, a medical worker from the Funan CDC said. "We only found eight cases of dysentery, and the patients' condition is improving.''

CDC staff are also distributing medical tablets to clean the local drinking water, an effective way to prevent the spread of disease.

"We are ready at any time to deal with the challenges of a second influx of flood water,'' said Yang Wenjiu.

It was the first time in 12 years that the sluice gates at Wangjiaba were opened to divert the Huaihe's flood waters, according to the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

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