China starts emergency response for flood-hit Anhui

BEIJING - Chinese authorities have issued a grade-IV emergency response on Saturday to rainstorm and flood in East China's Anhui province, which has left 10 people dead, 1.62 million impacted.

Since June 18, the southern part of Anhui province has been battered by rainstorm, flood and landslide. By 9 am Saturday, the disaster had left 10 dead, 1.62 million impacted, and 107,000 evacuated to safer places.

The disaster also had left 2,267 houses collapsed, 146,000 hectare of crops damaged, and caused 3.28 billion yuan ($495.9 million) in direct economic losses.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) and the China National Commission for Disaster Reduction have sent teams to assist relief work on the ground.

A grade-IV response, the lowest in China's emergency response system, requires a 24-hour alert, daily damage reports, and sending money and relief materials within 48 hours.

Anhui provincial disaster response and civil affairs authorities have delivered quilts, camp beds, rice, drinking water and instant food to the disaster stricken areas.

In a separate development, the MCA announced that it had delivered 1,000 tents, 2,000 camp bets and 10 field lights to Jiangsu province, where a rare tornado battered parts of Yancheng city on Thursday, leaving 98 people dead and 846 injured.