China allocates funds to help local authorities cope with drought and floods

The ministries of finance and emergency management have dispatched 470 million yuan ($69 million) of central disaster relief funds to help local authorities cope with drought and floods, according to a media release from the emergency management authority.

It said 50 million yuan is earmarked to support the ongoing rescue operation following flash floods on Thursday that have left 18 dead and another 13 missing as of Friday afternoon in Datong Hui and Tu autonomous county in Qinghai province.

The funds will be used for emergency rescue and disaster relief efforts with focuses on searching, rescuing and relocating the disaster-stricken people, as well as on secondary disaster control and the repair of damaged houses, the release said.

To help them address water supply difficulties caused by the lingering drought, 210 million yuan of the funds will be offered to six provincial regions in the basin of the Yangtze River, Asia's longest, and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

The remaining 210 million yuan will be allocated to eight provinces in northern parts of the country that have been suffering from floods triggered by continuous rainfalls, including Hebei, Shanxi and Shandong, it said.

The money for the eight provinces will be used for emergency rescue and disaster relief, it said. Among the priorities for local authorities are the evacuation and relocation of affected people, hazards removal, secondary disaster control and the repair of damaged houses.