2010-09-23 19:27

CHENGDU - The water level in the Tangjiashan Barrier Lake in Southwest China's Sichuan province dropped to a safe level Thursday after rescuers finished digging a channel through landslide debris, local authorities said.

The water level in the lake in Beichuan Qiang autonomous county dropped to a safe level at 1:12 am, after rescuers spent 34 hours digging a 250-meter-long, 20-meter-wide and three-meter-deep drainage channel.

Mud and rock from rain-triggered landslides Tuesday blocked the passage through which water from the barrier lake had been draining.

The landslides dumped 1.1 million cubic meters of mud and rock on the passage.

More than 6,200 people were relocated after the landslides and rain earlier in the week. Some 58,000 residents of the county were affected.

The Tangjiashan Barrier Lake has a surface area of 300,000 square meters. It was formed after the Wenchuan earthquake on May 12, 2008.

The 8.0-magnitude quake centered on Sichuan's Wenchuan county left more than 69,000 dead, 374,000 injured, 18,000 missing and millions homeless. Wenchuan is 160 kilometers from Beichuan.