Crest puts Huaihe River on high alert
( 2003-10-14 10:17) (Xinhua)
The flood-prone Huaihe River saw its fifth crest
this year as heavy rains continued along the upper reaches of the river,
officials said Monday.
The water level between Wangjiaba and Runheji is expected to reach 27.6
meters by 2 p.m. Tuesday, 1.1 meters higher than the warning level, said Anhui
provincial flood control headquarters.
A headquarters' spokesman said the high water level threatened most of the
dykes in the diversion areas, which were blown up in the summer to ease pressure
on the lower reaches.
He said the headquarters had already sent three special teams of flood
control experts to key and major areas to supervise and guide flood control
work.
All flood control offices at city and county levels had been ordered to
closely monitor water levels and a 24-hour report mechanism had been
established, he said.
Official figures show the heavy floods along the Huaihe River this summer
claimed at least 16 lives and caused 18.17 billion yuan (US$2.2 billion) in
direct economic losses in Anhui, Jiangsu and Henan Provinces.
Earlier this month, the Chinese government announced an investment of 38
billion yuan (4.6 billion US dollars) in flood control projects along the Huaihe
River in the next five years to better contain the flood-prone
river.
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