Society

Riverbank bursts, 3,000 residents evacuated in NE China

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-07-21 17:36

SHENYANG - Rainstorms caused a riverbank to burst in northeast China's Liaoning Province early Wednesday, with over 3,000 local residents evacuated, local authorities said.

The 20-meter-long breach occurred at 4:30 am at Tieling County's Aji section of the Shengli River, a branch of the Liaohe River, said an official at the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters.

The municipal government has dispatched 400 people to fight the flood and evacuated more than 3,000 residents.

Strong rainstorms began to hit Liaoning Monday and are forecast to continue until early Thursday.

From 5 pm Monday to 7 am Wednesday, an average 87 millimeters of precipitation fell in Liaoning, one of the heaviest rainfalls since 1994.

The government has also warned rainstorms may trigger landslides in eastern parts of neighboring Jilin Province. From 8 am Tuesday to 5 am Wednesday, an average 32.7 millimeters of rain fell in Jilin.