China's Jiangxi raises flood response to highest level

Aerial photo taken on July 9, 2020 shows an area of affected field in Xiangshuitan Township of Poyang County, East China's Jiangxi province. [Photo/Xinhua]

NANCHANG - East China's Jiangxi province Saturday raised its flood-control response from level II to level I, the top level of China's four-tier emergency response for floods.

The provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters said that 2,242 km of the 2,545 km of riverside and lakeside embankments in the province have seen water levels exceeding the warning marks.

Floods since July 6 have affected over 5 million people and damaged over 443,000 hectares of crops, according to the headquarters Saturday.

People load sand into bags for dyke reinforcement in Lushan city, East China's Jiangxi province, July 11, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

The province has evacuated 405,000 people from flood-prone areas, with a total of 154,000 people in urgent need of living assistance.

More than 41,700 people are fighting the floods in Jiangxi, aided by 537 sets of mechanical equipment.

The province has increased patrol forces for round-the-clock monitoring of risks along the embankments.

In Dongzhi County, neighboring Anhui Province, floods had affected more than 260,000 people, or about half of the county's population, as of Friday. More than 6,667 hectares of crops were destroyed, said Yu Jianguo, deputy director of the Dongzhi county emergency management bureau.