A grounded ship has blocked traffic on the Yangtze River, one of China's main waterways, for more than 28 hours, sources with local officials said on Thursday night.

 

The total number of ships affected was not known.

 

The cargo ship, registered in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality and carrying 3,400 tons of coal, was grounded at 6:54 p.m. on Wednesday in the Jianli section in the middle reaches of the Yangtze, said Li Zhiqiang, head of the Jianli waterway section.

 

The ship's water gauge was at 3.5 meters, well above the section's navigable water depth of 2.9 meters, Li said.

 

Workers are unloading coal from the ship in an effort to refloat it. While the work continues, local maritime authorities have imposed a navigation ban over the affected section of the waterway.

 

The most severe autumn drought in 50 years has worsened silting in the Yangtze, with water levels in some sections falling one meter lower than last year.

 

Local river bureau authorities had to start dredging much earlier than in previous years and used more dredgers to clear the silt.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2007)