![Sustained rain triggered flood in Zhuji, Zhejiang Province, resulting in 88 villages inundated on June 16, 2011.[PHOTO\CFP]](U364P886T1D122F12DT20110620105050.jpg "Sustained rain triggered flood in Zhuji, Zhejiang Province, resulting in 88 villages inundated on June 16, 2011.[PHOTO\CFP]")
(CNS)--Pelting rain hit central and southern China on June 13. Many people were evacuated due to the floods and geological disasters trigged by the rainstorms that destroyed their homes, China News Service reported Thursday.
According to the National Meteorological Centre, Chongqing, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Anhui, and Zhejiang Provinces and Municipalities in central China encountered rainstorms starting on June 13, with the rain in some parts of those regions reaching 180-290 millimeters.
Experts said the rain this year has been the strongest and widest in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, covering more than 440,000 square kilometers.
Moreover, a new round of heavy rain also battered several southern regions in China. Torrential rain began to lash some parts of Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Jiangxi, Shanghai, and Zhejiang Provinces and Municipalities on June 17.
Experts warned that the heavy downpours may trigger disasters such as flooding and landslides, especially in Hubei, Anhui, Jiangxi, Jiangsu Provinces and Shanghai.
Many farms and houses were flooded and destroyed, the report said. Some places also reported casualties.
Three die in floods in Zhejiang and Anhui
Three people died in the floods trigged by rainstorms in Zhejiang and Anhui Provinces in eastern China on June 16.
About 1.40 million people were hit by the rainstorms and 133,000 people were evacuated from their homes in Zhejiang Province. The rain damaged 1,600 houses and destroyed 3,100 homes, inflicting a direct economic loss of 2.47 billion yuan.
In Anhui Province, about 2.03 million residents in four cities and 27 counties were affected, including Anqing, Huangshan, Chizou, and Xuancheng. Three died and 81,000 were evacuated from their homes. Over 10,000 houses were destroyed, causing a direct economic loss of 1.14 billion yuan.
Flood defense order and emergency response launched
The Yangtze River flood control and drought relief headquarters issued the first flood defense order this year Wednesday, which required the Three Gorges project to increase its down-flow rate and narrow its daily flow range as the water level of the Three Gorges Reservoir rose to 146.62 meters, the highest level this year, at eight o'clock on June 15.
Meanwhile, according to Wei Shanzhong, an official at the headquarters, unusual floods were triggered by three rounds of heavy rains in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, causing many people's deaths. The headquarters had launched the third level of emergency response.
Officials deny rumor of breached dyke
The Zhejiang provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters denied that the dyke of Puyangjiang, a branch of the Qiangtang River, has been breached.
The headquarters said the dyke of Puyangjiang is still in good condition, but some dykes and ditches of lakes in Jiangzao County were damaged by the floods. No casualties caused by the breaches were reported.
