The cracks that have appeared in the levee of the Yangtze River after Saturday's 5.7-magnitude earthquake hit Jiujiang in east China's Jiangxi Province "pose no danger for the time being," government officials said on Tuesday.

The cracks were found in the Yong'an section of the levee, 30 meters above the ground, Zheng Keqiang, deputy secretary-general of the Jiangxi provincial government, said at a news conference.

"The cracks pose no immediate danger because this is the dry season," Zheng said.

Yang Huilong, a senior engineer from the local water conservancy authority, said the cracks will not cause serious flooding because water levels are currently below ground level and on the inside of the embankment.

The earthquake, measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale, rocked Ruichang and Jiujiang on Saturday morning, killing at least 15 people and injuring about 400. Thousands of houses collapsed or were badly damaged.

Tremors were felt in neighboring Hubei Province, where one person was killed and nearly 100 injured; and in Anhui Province, where dozens of homes were damaged.

Near Wangjiabao Village of the Jiujiang County, one of the hardest-hit areas of the tremor, two cracks measuring 3-meters long and 10-centimeters wide can be clearly seen, China Daily learned after visiting the site yesterday.

A local villager said a lot of water poured out from the cracks on the day the quake occurred.

"The cracks would be very dangerous if it were flood season; it could cause the whole dam to collapse," he said.

According to Zheng, experts from the Ministry of Water Conservancy are collaborating with the local flood control department to examine the embankment of the Yangtze River.

The earthquake and ensuing aftershocks also resulted in cracks in some buildings near the river.

Workers from the local flood control departments have been busy clearing the blocked canals, according to the official.

Meanwhile, around 400 experts have been organized to examine the damaged houses in Ruichang and Jiujiang in order to provide support for those who are still camping out in the open, he said.

More than 250,000 quake victims are still living in tents or makeshift "homes" on the street.

By 1:50 PM yesterday, 489 aftershocks had rattled Ruichang and Jiujiang since Saturday. Nine of them measured above 3.0 on the Richter scale, making local residents reluctant to return to their homes.

(China Daily November 30, 2005)