China raises flooding response level to second highest

China on Sunday upgraded its emergency response to flood control from Grade III to Grade II, the second-highest of the four-tier system since the water level in Poyang Lake in Jiangxi Province approached 22.50 meters.

Additionally, working teams have been dispatched to Jiangxi Province in the wake of the flood season, according to the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

A total of 37.89 million people in 27 provinces, including Jiangxi, Anhui, Hubei, and Hunan, have been affected, including 141 people who were killed or missing. 2.246 million people had been evacuated, and 1,258 million people needed emergency assistance. A total of 28,000 houses were collapsed, and the affected area of crops are 35,32,000 hectares, direct economic losses amounted to 82.23 billion yuan (some 11.76 billion U.S. dollars) so far.