Cargo was successfully air dropped on Monday to two massively populated centers in Shaoguan City, south China's Guangdong Province, which has been one of the worst hit areas by floods inflicted by typhoon Bilis.

Altogether 2.1 tons of foodstuffs, drinkable water and medicine were air dropped to a construction quarter of China Railways Tunnel Group Co.in Pingshi, where 1,200 workers were building a bullet railway near Jiafeng Mountain, and a provincial prison with 1,633 inmates and 220 wardens, both of which have been stranded since Saturday's flooding, according to Li Guoxi, leader of air dropping mission.

The two helicopters were used for the mission during which 21 persons from the flood-stricken Pingshi, were rescued, including 16 children, four pregnant women and one injured female, said Li.

Typhoon Bilis, which later transformed into tropical storm, made a landfall from south China coast on Friday and continued to affect more inland areas such as northern Guangdong, where Shaoguan and Pingshi are located, and Hunan Province, causing a death toll of 188 people and affecting the lives of millions more.

In Shaoguan, where the urban districts were all flooded, there have been power and water failures, and local residents have to live temporarily on water provided by tankers for fire control.

Relevant departments have been going all out to repair the damaged water and power supply infrastructure.

Some senior provincial party and government officials, including Zhang Dejiang, secretary of Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), rushed to Shaoguan to strengthen the flood relief efforts.

(Xinhua News Agency July 18, 2006)