Natural Disasters Hit China

Central News Agency August 21st report. The Hunan Provincial Flood and Drought Prevention Office announced today that the water level in Dongting Lake, China's second largest freshwater lake, has risen above the warning mark and the condition is extremely severe. Hunan Province has declared emergency flood conditions. Dongting Lake has a surface area of 2,800 sq. km. Millions of people live along its shores, one of the most populous areas in China.

Central News Agency reported that the water levels of the Xiang River, the Zi River, East Dongting Lake and South Dongting Lake rose above their warning marks yesterday. The water level along 526 kilometers of Dongting Lake's levees is above the danger level.

China Daily warned that if the water level of Dongting Lake continued to rise, a flood surge from the Yangtze River could hit 7,500,000 people in Wuhan City. Furthermore, Changsha City, the capital of Hunan Province, situated at the lower river basin, is "facing the threat of flooding." Local officials indicated that the water level of the Xiang River was only one meter below the record set in 1998.

On August 22 the Central News Agency reported that the Yangtze River's highest flood crest of the season has passed the upper Jing River section in Hubei Province. However, they anticipated that from August 24 through August 26, there would be more rain. Hubei Province is still facing the threat of severe flooding.

August 22, Central News Agency:Changsha City, Hunan Province in Mainland China is having the most serious fall flood in history. Currently the water level has surpassed the warning level at a 419 kilometer-long embankment. Moreover, the water level at another 351-kilometer-long embankment has gone over the level of danger. The Department of hydrology points out that the water level of Changsha has reached 38.3 meters, a new record for the fall in the history. The safety of people's life and property is seriously in danger.

Disasters in China: Changsha City and Wuhan City have declared emergencies. People in the flooded area do not have insurance. On Thursday the water level at Dongting Lake is 2.5-meter over the warning level. Hunan Province has started the urgent flood prevention program. Dongting Lake holds water draining from the Changjiang River basin. Once the embankment is broken, Changsha City with 6 million population and Wuhan City with 7 million population cannot be spared. The weather forecast calls for continuous rain around the 25th in Hunan Province. Around 8000 soldiers and policemen and about 900,000 people are at the front line of the flood. Currently the private insurance business in China is at the beginning stage. How the Chinese people that are affected by flood survive this difficult time is in the mind of the whole world.