On the front lines of China's flood battle

Firefighters rescue a man trapped under a bridge in Deyang, Sichuan province, on Friday. [Photo by Ma Xu/China Daily]

Since June 30, floods, hail and landslides have killed more than 160 people in China, mainly along the Yangtze River and its tributaries, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs. The list of calamities includes the collapse of 73,000 houses and the forced evacuation of 1.99 million residents. More than 1 million people are in urgent need of basic living assistance. The country has mobilized the People's Liberation Army, armed police, firefighters, officials and the public in the fight against flooding. They have been rescuing and evacuating stranded people, reinforcing dikes and dams, transporting relief supplies and dredging rivers in more than 10 provinces, including Anhui, Fujian, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Zhejiang.