Six people who are held directly responsible for a reservoir dam collapse late last month that led to a loss of 16 lives have been arrested in Yiliang County, southwest China's Yunnan Province.
   
According to a press release provided by the Yiliang County government on Saturday, the six people -- Zheng Shangying, Li Xianglin, Deng Chaoyin, Huang Shunfu, Chen Junyi and Li Tianyuan -- are suspected of two criminal charges on major safety accident in engineering and responsibility accident.
   
One more people, who is not identified, nor properly defined with any criminal charges, has been detained by the local police.
   
The press release said the county Party and government authorities would mete out and announce disciplinary actions against seven local officials and civil servants in association with the accident within one week.
   
The dam of the reservoir affiliated to the Shuanglong Power Plant in Xiaocaoba Township, Yiliang County, collapsed following torrential rains on July 21, killing 16 villagers and injuring 23 others.
   
Altogether 19 houses and 40 hectares of cropland in three villages were inundated in the wake of the collapse of the reservoir dam, and the direct economic loss was placed at 4.64 million yuan (US$572,133).
   
Later investigation concludes that the reservoir, with a storage capacity of 80,000 cubic meters, had been built without any prior official approval.
   
Reconstruction has been carried out in an orderly way in the accident- affected areas.
   
A special working group has been in operation in Yiliang County to offer judicial aid to the victims and be in charge of the compensation affairs.
   
Up to now, 1.1 million yuan (US$135,635) has been set aside for purposes of rebuilding rural dwellings, roads, primary schools, the river course, as well as ground leveling in Xiaocaoba Township.
 
(Xinhua News Agency August 28, 2005)