(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-01-29 19:23

BEIJING -- China's Ministry of Civil Affairs and Ministry of Finance on Tuesday allocated 98 million yuan (13.5 million US dollars) to four rain and snow-hit areas to help those affected.

The aid was given to Anhui, Jiangxi and Guizhou provinces and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, according to the ministries.

At present, the two ministries have provided a total of 126 million yuan in financial aid to six provinces and an autonomous region hit hard by icy rain and heavy snow.

The aid was mainly used to help people affected by the cold weather or those stranded in train stations or on blocked highways.

In a circular issued on Tuesday, the Ministry of Civil Affairs called on all local civil affairs agencies to fully participate in the fight against the inclement weather to bail out those affected.

By 2 p.m. on Monday, heavy snow had killed 24 people around the country since January 10, and affected more than 77.86 million people in 14 provinces, including Anhui, Jiangxi, Hubei and Hunan. The direct economic loss reached 22.09 billion yuan.