Perilous
Times
Severe Drought hits 10 million people in China
By Indo Asian News Service | IANS
Beijing, May 25 (IANS) Nearly 10 million people in China's central
Hubei province have been hit by a severe drought that dried up
water sources and destroyed thousands of hectares of crops.
A survey conducted by the provincial civil affairs department
showed that some 9.8 million people were reeling under the
drought, Xinhua reported.
Hubei has received 50 percent less rainfall in the last 200 days
as compared to the rainfall figures during the corresponding
period.
The provincial government Monday declared a state of emergency.
About 26,000 hectares of crops have been already lost and an
additional 88 million hectares are in danger due to lack of water,
the government said.
The Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydroelectric power
project in Hubei, has been releasing water to mitigate the
situation. The water levels in the middle and lower reaches of the
Yangtze have risen recently, official figures show.