Flood risk to be high throughout month

Some major rivers, including parts of the Yangtze and Yellow rivers, will remain at high risk of flooding in August due to larger than average rainfall, the state flood control authority said on Wednesday.

Adding to the danger, about three strong typhoons are forecast to make landfall in China this month.

"The rainfall forecast for August is higher than average, especially in Southwest, East and part of Northeast China," Zhang Jiatuan, a spokesman for the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, said on Wednesday.

Because of that, there is a high risk of flooding in the upper reaches of the Yangtze, middle stretches of the Yellow River, and major rivers in the Northeast like the Songhua and Liaohe, Zhang said.

With the lasting influence of a superstrong El Nino and an approaching La Nina, which could bring extreme weather and unpredictable precipitation, the month will be a critical period for flood prevention, he said.

On Monday, the flood control authority said water levels in the lower reaches of the Yangtze and major lakes in its basin - such as Dongting and Poyang - had subsided beneath the alert level.

At Three Gorges Dam, the water dropped 5.68 meters lower than its high point of 158.5 meters on July 22, reducing the danger of flooding along the whole Yangtze, the authority said.

Water levels climbed above the alert level on June 30, which brought the most severe flooding since 1999.

Adding to the danger in August, Zhang said, forecasters are predicting a more-than-average two to three typhoons will make landfall. They are expected to be stronger than usual, bringing the possibility that they will travel farther to the north.

The central government has made flood control a top priority this summer. From March 21, the start of the flood season, to July 29, China had seen its second-heaviest rainfall since 1954, with 28 deluges, said Chen Lei, minister of water resources.

Some northern provinces, like Hebei, had sudden and severe flooding in July.

Flooding in Hebei that began on July 19 had affected more than 9.04 million people and left 130 dead and 110 missing as of July 23, the provincial government said.

Zhang conceded that it's hard to forecast flooding in the small rivers in northern regions like Hebei, but said those regions should increase their readiness to deal with floods for the rest of the season.