NANCHANG: A severe drought since July 15 has affected more than 1.38 million people in east China’s Jiangxi Province, local authorities said.
As of 4pm on Monday, drought conditions triggered by sustained hot weather and low precipitation had impacted 83 counties in 11 cities of the province, according to the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters.
It added that a total of 11,000 people had difficulty accessing drinking water, while approximately 141,100ha of crops had been damaged due to water shortage.
The provincial meteorological observatory issued a red alert for excessive heat at 7.35am yesterday, with temperatures expected to exceed 37ºC in the next 24 hours.
China’s State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management have formulated specific flood control and drought relief plans to prevent casualties.
China has earmarked 200 million yuan (RM131mil) of disaster relief funds to support drought relief work. — Xinhua
