Mianchuan, an island town located in the middle of the Yangtze River, is heeding the warnings after Jiangxi officials issued the highest flood alarm this week. The small town's water level reached 21 meters on Wednesday, slightly down, but still three meters above the town's danger level. Houses, trees and electric poles on the waterside became half submerged.

Until now, over 6 million people have been affected by floods triggered by heavy rains in eastern China's Jiangxi Province, with thousands moving to higher ground for safety.

The China Meteorological Administration on Wednesday warned of heavy rain with no letup for the next 10 days. Officials are taking no chances and have been evacuating its residents since Monday.

Local authorities told CGTN that they had evacuated 4,000 residents on the island – especially elderly, children, and people with disabilities – in just two days due to flood risks. 

As Mianchuan officials and volunteers prepare for the coming flood by strengthening floodwalls and levees, more residents are headed to temporary shelters. Some are simply crashing in their relatives' homes to wait until the end of the flood season.

"I think the water level is similar to the one in 1998," said Fang Shixia, a Mianchuan resident. "To ensure our life safety, the government told us to evacuate."

But some have decided to stay and protect their hometown against the rising tide. Joining hundreds of soldiers from the People's Liberation Army, militias of nearby regions, and residents, mostly males under 65, have reinforced Mianchuan's flood levees.

"This is my house. I came back from Shandong a couple of days ago. The government called upon us to help with the flood prevention," said Zhou Maozhen, who plans to go back to work once the flood is gone. "This is where I was born and raised, my hometown."

"I used to live next to the Yangtze River, and I joined the army after seeing soldiers fight the flood in 1998. As a veteran, my life is coming around full circle by staying to defend this town," said Ouyang Jie, who was stationed in Turpan, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, for more than ten years ago. Besides the strong laborers who volunteered to stay, there are still a few residents who have not been evacuated from this island town. Authorities are ready with a backup plan.

"Our next step is to find them door to door. If the water surges higher, we must put people's life safety as the top priority and relocate them by all means," said Ouyang Wei, vice Party secretary of Mianchuan, while sweeping each household to make sure no one's left behind.