The Ministry of Civil Affairs reported this week
that 1,326 people died in natural disasters in the first nine
months of this year and another 186 remain missing.
Vice Minister of Civil Affairs Yang Yanyin said on
Wednesday -- International Day for Disaster Reduction -- that more
than 170 million people have been affected by natural disasters
that included floods, droughts, landslides, typhoons and
earthquakes. Total direct economic losses nationwide are estimated
to exceed 90.6 billion yuan (US$10.9 billion).
Although heavy cross-regional flooding did not
occur this year along major rivers, localized floods caused huge
losses, said Yang. Continuous torrential rains in late August and
early September in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality and
Sichuan Province caused what is believed to be the highest flood
peak since 1998.
The death toll from floods in southwest China
topped 180 and left more than 60 others missing. Landslides and
flash floods sweeping through mountain valleys caused most of the
deaths.
Earthquakes measuring greater than 5 on the Richter
scale struck southwest China's Yunnan Province, north China's Inner
Mongolia Autonomous Region and northwest China's Qinghai
Province.
A severe spring drought brought huge economic
losses to Inner Mongolia.
The central government has so far allocated more
than 5.8 billion yuan (US$700 million) to disaster relief.
The ministry has urged civil affairs departments
across the nation to improve disaster monitoring and prevention and
to provide more aid to victims. Prompt and efficient disaster
relief work has helped to limit casualties, Yang said.
China is one of the world's countries most frequently hit by
natural disasters.
International Day for Disaster Reduction is organized by the
United Nations' International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.
"Learning" is the theme of this year’s World Disaster
Reduction Campaign, as learning to live with the risks
that hazards pose to communities is one of the key ways to protect
people and property.
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(China Daily October 15, 2004)