Lingering drought ravages SW China

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At least 11 million people are short of drinking water because of a drought that has hit 15 provinces and autonomous regions, with the weather not expected to improve anytime soon.

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Drought threatens southwestern China

More than half of those affected by the dry spell are in Yunnan province, which is suffering its worst drought in six decades due to lack of rainfall and high temperatures.

Nearly 6 million people and 4 million heads of livestock in Yunnan do not have adequate drinking water, the provincial civil affairs bureau said yesterday. In total, nearly 14 million people are affected by the drought.

However, no rain is expected to arrive anytime soon and the drought might stretch to May, when the rainy season begins for Yunnan, the provincial meteorological bureau said.

About 85 percent of the crops in the province are also suffering from water shortages.

The State flood control and drought relief office yesterday raised the scale of its emergency support to Yunnan to help it counter the disaster, but details on the amount of funds allocated were not available yesterday.

Besides Yunnan, the drought has also hit the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and Guizhou, Sichuan, Shanxi, Henan and Shaanxi provinces, as well as the Chongqing municipality and Hunan Province.

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