Khaleej Times, 8/25/02

DONGTING LAKE, China - More than a million people, including soldiers and farmers, on Saturday prepared to battle a flood crest expected in the next 24 hours on China's swollen Dongting Lake, where rising waters threaten to engulf millions of people living in the area. The water level at China's second largest lake in central China's Hunan province had been rising by one centimeter per hour and reached 34.9 meters (116 feet) by Saturday afternoon -- three meters (10 feet) above warning level, a spokesman for the provincial government told AFP.

It is expected to peak at just below 35 meters Sunday morning -- the fourth highest level since 1949 and just 94 centimeters (38 inches) below its peak in 1998, when lake waters overflowed its banks, causing severe flooding that killed more than 4,000 people. But spokesman Gong Ailin said officials were confident the area would be spared a repeat of the 1998 disaster as the water level rose at a slower pace by Saturday evening and is expected to remain stable after the peak, for at least a couple of days, before slowly receding.

More rain, however, is expected in the area on Monday, and the official Xinhua news agency quoted a senior official as saying even modest rain can "greatly worsen" the situation. "The rain won't have a big impact on the water level, but it will not be good for the dykes, because it will keep the water level at a high level. Dykes soaked in high water for a long time will definitely experience cracks," Gong said.

"We're optimistic we can surpass this crisis, but the situation is still very tense right now because the water level has been high for some time." No serious breaches occurred Saturday as more than a million flood fighters, including 15,000 troops, 100,000 militia members and many farmers and other local residents, rushed to pile sandbags by hundreds of kilometres (miles) of dykes along the massive 2,800 square kilometre (1,070 square mile) lake.

Wherever seepage or leaks are noticed, crews immediately plug them, preventing breaks. So far more than 1.7 million people have already been affected by small scale flooding and the fear of potentially massive flooding around the lake, with 600,000 relocated from the region, one of the most densely populated in China, according to official figures. Local residents, although worried, are not panicked and are "quite prepared," said International Red Cross delegate Jasmina Pitrovic. "Everybody is really on high, high alert. Nobody is relaxed yet at all, but that's a region that's been flooded many times already, so people have a sense of preparedness," Pitrovic said.

The lake, likened by the Red Cross to a balloon filled with water about to burst, has been swollen by heavy runoff from rivers during a wet summer. Li Meitou, a farmer mobilized to patrol the dykes, said as many as 70,000 people would be immediately affected if the dyke near Daorenji burst. "Of course, we are worried, but not as worried as in 1998, because we've spent the years in between strengthening the dykes," he said. Dongting Lake acts as a natural reservoir for the flood-prone Yangtze River. If dykes break it could be disastrous for 10 million people living in the region.

Employees from local companies and government agencies were among the scores of people mobilized to patrol dykes around the clock. In the town of Yueyang off the lake shore, tents were set up every few hundred meters (yards) on top of a dyke, with volunteers working in shifts to keep 24-hour guard. "What we're particularly looking for are places where water is starting to seep through under the dykes, which can cause erosion," said Wang Ziqiang, an employee from the Hunan Tianyun Chemical Corporation.

Wang started his eight-hour watch at 8:00 am Saturday (0000 GMT). The chemical factory where he works could be seen in the near distance, below the lake level. "We don't mind sitting here because it means protecting our factory and protecting our homes," Wang said.

Residents seemed confident government attention -- including several visits by Premier Zhu Rongji in recent years with the last in June, and massive amounts invested in strengthening dykes since the 1998 floods -- will prevent a disaster from happening. "I think we are relatively safe. Everyone knows what to do. Everyone is willing to make a contribution," said Huang Quanwei, another volunteer.

Around 900 people have already died in a series of floods and landslides around China this summer and 16 have died from the Hunan floods. - AFP