Business dries up for fishermen, ships in drought-parched Hongze

Hongze Lake in Jiangsu province has been facing its worst drought in decades as average precipitation has fallen significantly.

Precipitation from May to July in China's fourth-largest freshwater lake only amounted to 19.5 centimeters, which was less than half what it was in previous years, according to the Jiangsu Water Resources Department.

Zhang Jinsong, deputy director of the department, said that the area witnessed the lowest amount of precipitation since 1949.