Chinese armed forces deploy over 16,000 members to Henan

The Chinese armed forces had deployed more than 6,000 officers and soldiers as well as over 10,000 militiamen in Central China's Henan province as of Thursday afternoon to take part in disaster relief efforts in the flood-stricken province.

By 5 pm Thursday, the People's Liberation Army and the People's Armed Police Force had sent 44 groups of troops and militiamen who carried more than 1,400 sets of vehicles and engineering machines as well as over 170 boats to flood-affected places to assist in local governments' endeavors to curb the aftermath of city floods, debris flow and landslides, according to the PLA Central Theater Command, which is in charge of the military's disaster relief operations.

Top officers from the command, including General Zhu Shengling, its political commissar, have been in Henan since Wednesday to oversee and lead the armed forces' relief work, the command said in a statement.

As the rain has begun to move northward, the command's major aid forces have started deploying troops in 12 hazardous regions in northern Henan.

Many military units stationed in Henan including parachute and missile brigades have sent their officers and soldiers to help local authorities and residents to handle the natural disasters.