More than 66.3 million Chinese have been affected by floods this summer, with 360 people killed and direct economic losses of 24.3 billion yuan, according to latest figures from the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

Apart from 217,000 houses wholly or partially destroyed, more than 4.28 million hectares of grain crops have been hit, with 2.03million hectares completely destroyed, said Cheng Dianlong, deputy director of the Office of the headquarters.

Most of the deaths occurred after continuous downpours across the Jialing River Valley in southwest China's Sichuan Province since the beginning of the month which have resulted in floods in almost all the tributaries of Jujiang River, a branch of the Jialing, and triggered severe mountain torrents, mud-rock flows and landslides, he said.

The ferocious floods battered 40 counties along their route, submerging the downtown areas of four counties and shattering two small water dams.

Cheng warned that the situation across the Huaihe River Valley is at flashpoint with all trunk rivers there reporting dangerously high water levels.

The floods in the River Valley are reminiscent of the grave situation in 2003, Cheng said.

To cope with the situation, the headquarters have launched a red-alert emergency reaction scheme, maneuvering upper-reach reservoirs to retain water and diverting water into other waterways to weaken flood peaks.

More than half a million people in Henan, Jiangsu and Anhui provinces along the river have been mobilized to patrol water dams and riverbanks around-the-clock to detect and prevent dangerous conditions. More than 80,000 residents have been evacuated. 

A total of 212 minor risky conditions have been reported so far in waterways in Henan and Anhui provinces.

"People are putting up a difficult defense with the water level of the tributary Hongru River above the safety mark," Cheng said.

By Monday, the three provinces had reported 5.67 billion yuan of direct economic losses, nearly one quarter of the national total.

(Xinhua News Agency July 11, 2007)