About 20,000 Trapped by Floods as More Rains Loom

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, June 20, 2002

About 20,000 Trapped by Floods as More Rains Loom

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Chinese Premier Calls for Alertness to Flooding

Up to 20,000 people in east China were trapped by floodwaters on Wednesday, officials said, as further rains threatened to swell floods which are thought to have killed about 500 people around the country.

"A large number of people are cut off by high waters. There were 20,000 people trapped yesterday (Tuesday) and between 10,000 and 20,000 today," an official at the civil affairs department of Fuzhou city told reporters.

The rising waters were caused by the collapse of a dyke of the city in central China's Jiangxi province, which was now being repaired, said the official, who gave his name as Wu.

He said 14 people had died due to the flooding in three counties near the city.

Rainstorms Hit Shaanxi Province

"Those who are trapped are living in tents at the moment," he added.

The situation in the region could yet worsen, with forecasters warning that Jiangxi was among a series of provinces threatened by further heavy rains.

During Wednesday heavy rain and rainstorms were expected to hit Jiangxi, as well as Zhejiang, Fujian and Guizhou provinces and Guangxi Autonomous Region, all towards the south or east of the country.

Some places would see torrential rains, bringing a renewed threat of flooding even as some of the regions were still mopping up from earlier inundations, the report said.

Other areas along the Yangtze River, including the already-hit southwestern province of Sichuan, will see heavy rains, hindering flood-prevention work.

Guilin badly affected, Shannxi worst hit

Another area badly affected in recent days has been the scenic backpacker's mecca of Guilin, in Guangxi, which sees large numbers of foreign tourists every year.

A million people in Guilin city have been affected by recent flooding, with more than 2,000 homes collapsed, 700 mines and factories forced to close and 200 kilometres (125 miles) of highway destroyed.

Since June 14, 261 millimetres (10 inches) of rain has fallen on the city, the agency said.

Chinese leaders had ordered local governments to do more to protect people from the floods.

Vice Premier Wen Jiabao urged regional authorities at an emergency meeting in Beijing to "take effective measures" to protect lives and property from what threatens to be a miserable summer of flooding.

The worst-hit area so far in days of flooding has been the northern province of Shaanxi, which was pounded by heavy downpours from June 8 to 10, causing a confirmed 152 deaths, earlier reports said.

Another 300 missing people "are not expected to be found alive", acting governor of the province Jia Zhibang told reporters on Tuesday.

There have also been up to 11 fatalities in the southeastern province of Fujian, where more than 500 millimetres (20 inches) of rain fell around June 11 in one area.

According to reports late last week, the floods were additionally known to have claimed 29 lives in the central province of Hubei, 26 in Chongqing municipality and 30 in Sichuan, both in southwest China.

Premier Zhu Rongji has already warned that this summer's floods could end up being worse than those along the Yangtze in 1998.

Flood prevention experts in China said last month that the region was likely to receive more rain than in a normal year due to abnormal weather, including cyclones and strong tides, resulting from the El Nino phenomenon.

Xinhua and China Daily contributed to the story

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