Heavy rain has battered much of the country in recent weeks,
sounding the alarm over the approaching flood season, warned senior
government officials.
Governments at all levels should prepare for possible large floods
and work towards controlling the deluges, Hui
Liangyu, vice-premier and also director of the State
Flood-Control and Drought Prevention Headquarters in Beijing, said
over the weekend.
His warning came ahead of downpours and a sudden temperature fall
in the capital on Sunday night.
Above-average rainfall is likely across the country from June to
August, said meteorologists with the China Central Meteorological
Observatory.
In
the lower Yangtze River valley and southern China, more rain than
normal is expected this year, meteorologists said.
The Yellow River valley and areas further north also face the
prospect of more rain than they have experienced in each of the
past four years.
The main flood season usually occurs in June, July and August for
most of China, meteorologists said.
The floods occur along tributaries of major rivers. At present,
however, the main channels of China's biggest rivers, including its
longest, the Yangtze, are flowing normally, they said.
The Beijing headquarters for flood-control and drought prevention
has sent investigators since mid-April to flood-prone areas to
check their anti-flood measures and works.
Nanchang, capital of East China's Jiangxi
Province, plans to invest 1 billion yuan (US$120 million) in
the coming two years to upgrade its outdated drainage system.
The city has been plagued with seasonal floods in its downtown
districts, due to poor plumbing.
Meanwhile, with torrential rains expected in late June and early
July, Jiangxi provincial government is on alert and has worked out
contingency plans in the event of flooding.
In
mid-May, the worst flood in a decade hit the Xiangjiang River basin
in central China's Hunan
Province.
Flooding caused by downpours reportedly killed 50 people, while
another 29 went missing.
Provinces and regions that experienced heavy rainfall in mid-May
and early June also included Guangdong and Guangxi in south China,
Jiangxi and Fujian in east China, and Guizhou in southwest
China.
Apart from leaving scores of people homeless, serious flooding in
Guangdong resulted in economic losses estimated at more than 620
million yuan (US$74.7 million).
(China Daily June 23, 2003)