U.S. Water News Online
BEIJING-- An estimated 10 million people have been affected and hundreds of thousands left homeless as floodwaters continue to rage along the lower Yangtze River.
China has mobilized more than one million people to reinforce the banks of the Yangtze as the country's longest river swelled to its third highest level on record.
Torrential rain in the last month along the Yangtze has pushed the water level up by 32 feet, or 6 feet above the danger level in Nanjing, capital of eastern Jiangsu province, the Xinhua news agency said. In some provinces, as many as 10,000 people took refuge on the roofs of their homes to await rescue.
Experts predict water levels will continue to rise, posing a threat to dikes, cities, and townships along the river. Property losses are now reported at approximately $575 million.
Hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland have also been flooded, with initial losses estimated at close to $2.4 billion, officials said. Officials have appealed for medicine, clothing, food, and relief funds to rebuild after the floods.
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