More heavy rains hit flooded Chinese region
Heavy rains today lashed a remote section of north-western China where weekend flooding killed at least 702 people, as hopes of finding more survivors faded and crews worked to stave off outbreaks of disease.
More than 1,000 people were still listed as missing in the disaster, with mud, stones and debris covering many houses.
With the chances of finding more survivors falling by the hour, troops and rescue teams joined by traumatised survivors turned to recovering bodies and seeing to the needs of the living.
Clean drinking water was a primary concern, with most local sources destroyed or too polluted to use.
Rain was expected to grow heavier in the coming days, with up to 3.5in forecast for Friday, the National Meteorological Centre reported. The chance of more landslides was "relatively large", it added.
Entire communities in Gansu province's Zhouqu district were swallowed up when the debris-choked Bailong River broke its banks on Sunday, releasing wave after wave of mud and rubble-strewn water.
While torrential rains were the direct cause, tree cutting that left the dry hills exposed and the weakening of cliff faces by a massive 2008 earthquake were seen as contributing factors.
Buildings were torn from their foundations, their lower floors blown out by the force of the debris-laden water. Three villages comprising hundreds of households were entirely buried and much of the county seat left submerged.
Crews using explosives and excavators today rushed to drain an unstable lake on the Bailong upriver of Zhouqu, fearing more rain could cause a massive breach and bring more misery to the town.
Disinfectant crews in protective suits sprayed chemicals across the ground and over machinery.
State media reported numerous cases of dysentery, while infected injuries, a lack of sanitation, clean drinking water and accumulating rubbish increased the risk of typhoid, cholera and other diseases.
Rescue crews have been largely reliant on hand tools, with heavy equipment either unable to traverse the difficult terrain or mired in mud.
But roads have reopened today, allowing heavy earth-moving equipment and supplies to flow in.
At least 45,000 people have evacuated their homes, and the Civil Affairs Ministry reported the delivery of 7,000 tents and 21,400 blankets to the area, with thousands more on the way. Zhouqu has a population of 134,000, but it wasn't clear how many needed emergency shelter.
