The death toll of mountain torrents in central China's Hunan Province had risen to eight as of 11:00 AM Wednesday, local government sources confirmed.

According to the Hunan Provincial Headquarters for Flood Control and Drought Relief, at least 24 cities and counties in the province were hit by torrential rains from May 30 to June 1. Five cities and counties reported rainfall of more than 100 mm, with the largest rainfall exceeding 200 mm.

Mountain torrents flooded a dozen villages in Xinshao County, where three people were found killed and more than 60,000 villagers have been evacuated to safe places. As the mountain torrents occurred at 3:00 AM Wednesday when most villagers were sleeping, the casualties might rise, a local government official said.

Mountain torrents caused blackout and cut off telecommunications services in the affected areas.

Serious mountain torrents also hit Lianyuan City, Xinhua County and Louxing District of Loudi City, killing five people and besieging more than 20,000 others. Traffic and power supply were cut off in these areas.

Torrential rain and mountain torrents also struck Yongshu and Longshan counties, seriously damaging crops and residential houses.

Officials of the provincial government have ordered immediate rescue efforts in the affected areas and called on all localities to get ready to fight against possible floods in the coming days and protect the safety of local reservoirs.

Authorities call for tighter flood prevention

Flood control authorities across China have been told to intensify flood control and prevention efforts as the whole country enters flood season on Wednesday.

The State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters has forecast heavy rainfalls and possible flood disasters in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the country's longest river, in the coming three months, according to Wang Shucheng, the headquarters' deputy chief and minister of water resources.

Wang warns areas along the Yellow River, China's second longest river, have to be on alert as well, particularly the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and the northern parts of the Loess Plateau, where heavy rainfalls are predicted.

Even arid areas along the Haihe River in the north must not be off guard because heavy floods are often likely to follow longtime drought, he said.

Wang urges local flood control authorities to bear in mind the flood resistant capacity of rivers, lakes and water traffic arteries and step up reinforcement of dams, reservoirs and other flood control projects.

"Flood control authorities must give priority to the safety of the people and their property," Wang said.

While northern China is largely at the doorstep of this year's flood season, most southern provinces and regions have reported repeated rainstorms and coastal regions along the southeastern coast are being prepared for typhoons.

The China Meteorological Administration has forecast more rainfall in the coming three months compared with the same period of last year, which has made it "imperative" for the country to tighten flood control in major rivers, according to Qin Dahe, director of the administration.

In 2004, floods killed 1,343 people in China, the fewest since the 1990s.

Pearl River region earmarked for flood protection

Flood-control will be ambitiously upgraded along South China's Pearl River Valley to protect the country's most populous and prosperous area.

Billions of yuan have been earmarked to ensure the safety of millions of people and key cities and regions including Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macao.

"The latest plan will double the existing standards of water-control projects including dikes, reservoirs and embankments," Wang Qiusheng, deputy director of the Pearl River Water Resources Commission (PRWRC), told some 100 experts examining the blueprint, which if passed by government stake holders, will be completed by 2020. The criterion is expected to be redoubled to prevent havoc from being caused by the worst deluge in 200 years.

Other cities including Nanning, Wuzhou, Liuzhou and Guangzhou, Foshan, Zhaoqing and Zhongshan will also be given protection.

Severe flooding is an annual threat to the region dubbed China's economic engine.

An integrated system will collectively control a network of dams, slewgates, dikes and other anti-flood measures. Although experts passed the planning in principle, it has to be submitted to the State Council for final approval. The timeline for the start of construction has yet to be revealed.

"Improving flood-control capacities along the Pearl River will enable us to ensure a sustainable development along its valley and delta over future decades," Jing Zhengshu, vice-minister of water resources, said.

However, he admitted "there is a long way to go" before the flood defence becomes a reality.

And he admitted the region's booming economy will remain at the mercy of severe floods in the meantime.

"As the largest river in South China, the water course system has not been rectified completely with all flood-control facilities well renovated and updated," Jing said.

The delta borders Hong Kong and Macao and produces about 60 per cent of the region's total gross domestic product (GDP).

The danger has risen because of shrinking flood plains. Land reclamation of tidal flats is also preventing flood waters from flowing naturally.

"If devastating floods occur, the consequences would be too ghastly to contemplate with the valley's sub-standards water-control projects and aging reservoirs," Jing warned.

Covering six provinces and autonomous region of Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Guangdong, Hunan and Jiangxi, the river valley has played a key role in pushing forward national economy.

With a population of more than 96 million, the river valley is providing China with 11 per cent of the total GDP and 37 per cent of the total gross export value.

Floods along the Pearl River and its tributaries are the biggest threat and could jeopardize the economy.

In 1994 alone, more than 18 million people were affected by floods which caused more than 28 billion yuan (US$3.4 billion) worth of damage.

Today, 23 million people and 690,000 hectares of cultivated land have been brought into effective protection with more than 12,000 kilometres of sea walls, dikes and hundreds of reservoirs built over the past fifty years.

(Xinhua News Agency, China Daily June 1, 2005)