More floods have been forecast for China this month, the regions
in the middle reaches of Yellow River and Yangtze River, Liaohe
River and Haihe River likely to be the most seriously affected,
according to the China Meteorological Administration (CMA).
The CMA made the announcement at a press conference in Beijing
on Monday.
Wang Bangzhong, a senior official from the CMA said that the
country's average temperature in June was 22.3 degrees Celsius and
the average rainfall 136.9 millimeters, both higher than the same
period in previous years. Between June 17 and 25, heavy rainfall
caused severe floods in areas south of the Yangtze River. Water
levels in the Xijiang River of Guangxi
Zhuang Autonomous Region were at their highest since 1949; the
swelling of the Minjiang River caused the area's worst flood in 21
years.
Further, devastating floods engulfed a school in northeastern
China's Heilongjiang
Province claiming the lives of 117 people, including 105
schoolchildren.
As at June 28, violent rainstorms, hailstorms and tornados in
more than 20 provinces and regions had resulted in 3.4 billion yuan
(US$410.8 million) in direct economic losses, Wang said.
The forecast issued by the administration on Monday shows more
rainfall will slash areas south to the Yangtze River in July, and
areas such as northwestern Hunan
and eastern Guizhou can expect rainfall about 20 to 30 percent more
than average. Rainfall in eastern, central southern, and
southwestern areas will be more than 100 millimeters, Rainfall in
the Three Gorges and south China areas are expected to reach
200-300 millimeters.
More rain, about 20 to 30 percent more than average, is also
expected in northeast China, the middle and eastern parts of the Inner
Mongolia Autonomous Region, the northern Xinjiang
Uygur Autonomous Region, northern Hebei
Province and the middle reaches of Yellow River, Haihe River and
Liaohe River.
(Xinhua News Agency July 5, 2005)