The embankment of the Yellow River suddenly broke around 8:30 pm Friday in Bayannur of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in north China, and the accident caused no casualties by Saturday morning.

The 30-meter-wide embankment breach in Wulate Qianqi of Bayannur affected over 3,000 local residents in five villages, who have been or are being evacuated to safe places, said Li Maolong, an official with the local committee of the Communist Party of China.

Thousands of rescuers are busy building and strengthening the dam, and helping to transfer flood victims to safe places.

Recent local rainfalls are not significantly higher than the average level in the corresponding period of previous years and no rains hit Wulate Qianqi when the breach occurred, Li Maolong said, noting that the breach was mainly caused by silt in the upper-reach watercourse of the river.

The 5,464-km-long Yellow River originates from western China's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and runs through nine provincial areas to enter the Bohai Sea, carrying large amount of yellow mud lying on its course.

(Xinhua News Agency September 6, 2003)