DPRK Hard Hit by Long Spell of Drought and HeatThe Democratic People's Republic of Korea is hard hit by an unprecedentedly long spell of drought. An unusual long spell of drought has persisted for 90 days since early March, according to information released by the central weather forecasting institute of the hydrometeorological bureau.According to a historical record, drought lasted for 90 days from July 11 to October 11, 1727, the longest one in Korea, causing tremendous losses to crops, livestock and human lives. From the climatological point of view this long spell of drought is something rare in the history of meteorological observation. It is believed to happen once in 1,000 years. From early march to this date precipitation in all parts of the country registered at 18. 3 mm on an average, only 11 percent of the annual average and 17 percent of last year's. A 1 mm rainfall was registered in 5 days and about 5 mm rainfall in 2 days in Pyongyang. Heat and strong wind are frequently recorded. As a result, soil in all parts of the country remained dry up to over 20 cm deep, making it hardly possible for seeds to sprout. according to a preliminary estimate made by the ministry of agriculture as of June 1, hundreds of thousands of hectares of farmland are hard hit by drought, taking the country as a whole. Over 80 or 90 percent of the sown seeds of potato, wheat, barley and maize have already been dried up. Strong wind did severe damage to Kosong county, Kangwon Province, Sariwon, North Hwanghae Province, Haeju, South Hwanghae Province, Chongjin, North Hamgyong Province, and other areas. Crops including potato, wheat, barley and maize sown in a large area of farmland there were rooted out and all the fruits at their best including apricot, peach and plum fell down. Despite the state's measures to mobilize all pumping equipment and manpower for minimizing drought damage, it still persists. The drought is expected to last for more days to come. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |