Alert raised as water levels keep rising

Jiangsu province raised its flood alert to red, the highest level, for the Yangtze's Nanjing section at 9 am on Saturday after the water level at the Nanjing hydrological station in the provincial capital rose to 10.26 meters as of 7:50 am, exceeding the previous high of 10.22 meters, which was recorded in 1954, said the local water resources department.

Anhui province activated a Level I emergency response－the highest in a four-tier emergency response system－for flood control at 6 pm on Saturday. At present, water at the Yangtze's mainstream in Anhui and the Wangjiaba hydrological station of the Huaihe River in the province has exceeded warning levels.

Due to continuous swelling in the Chuhe River, the authorities in Chuzhou, also in Anhui, demolished two sections of dikes to divert floodwater from the river.

However, more torrential rains are still expected in many areas along the Yangtze.

Seven rivers in Hunan, Hubei, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces are being lashed by heavy rainfall that started on Saturday and is expected to continue until Monday. The basin of four of the Yangtze's major tributaries－the Jialing, Minjiang, Tuojiang and Hanjiang rivers－is forecast to be engulfed by heavy rainfall lasting from Tuesday to Thursday, the ministry said.