Authorities around Dongting Lake, China's second largest fresh water lake, are preparing for possibly the worst flood of the year as flash floodwater continues to rise, soaking thousands of kilometers of embankments.

Thousands of people near the lake, located in Central China's Hunan Province, have been mobilized to flood-embankments surrounding the lake around the clock to deal with any possible emergency, according to the latest reports yesterday.

By Sunday afternoon, the water level of Dongting Lake in Central China had risen to 32.48 meters, 0.48 meters over the 32-metre flood warning mark, according to local flood-control authorities.

Over the next two days, water levels at Dongting Lake in Hunan Province, south of the rain-swollen Yangtze River, are expected to rise even further with more rainfall accumulating in the rivers flowing into the lake.

As of today, the water level is expected to exceed 33.2 meters, and by Thursday it could rise to 33.5 meters.

Emergency services in the province have to be put on high alert, experts say.

Zhang Yunchuan, governor of Hunan, urged local officials to take effective measures to get all flood control facilities ready and put into action.

Thousands of kilometers of flood-control embankments on the lake now shield more than 10 million people and about 667,000 hectares (1,648,157 acres) of fertile farmland.

In Southwest China's Yunnan Province, a week of torrential rain has caused a series of floods and landslides, leaving 55 dead and many missing in Yanjin and Xinping counties.

Work huts at a construction site of the Xiaowan Hydropower Station under construction in the province were demolished by a sudden landslide.

Five workers have been confirmed dead, 10 were reported missing and 11 injured.

Rescue workers are clearing debris, and have set up warning signs at dangerous sites to avoid further landslides at construction areas.

Residents in Xinping County, which was hit by a serious flood and landslide, have received donations of cash, food and clothing, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

In Hangzhou, the capital of East China's Zhejiang Province, 21 people were killed and eight others reported missing as powerful mountain torrents triggered by heavy rain hit the coastal province over the past few days.

The torrents, which started on Thursday and affected about 89,000 people, hit Jinhua, Quzhou and Lishui regions of Zhejiang, destroying 4,210 houses and over 6,400 hectares (15,814 acres) of farmland, said sources with the province's Flood-Control and Drought Mitigation Headquarters.

In the northwest, no casualties have been reported after continuous high temperatures and heavy rains caused severe flooding in Kashi Prefecture in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Flood relief workers said this month's persistent high temperatures have melted mountain snow which brought about the heavy rainfall in Kashi.

At the height of the flood the Gez River swept through the region at 640 cubic meters per second, causing the most severe flooding on record. Nine counties and cities have been affected by the disaster.

(China Daily August 20, 2002)