China updates flood control responses

BEIJING, July 29 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Water Resources updated late on Saturday latest response measures to prevent floods following Typhoon Doksuri, the fifth typhoon of this year.

The Level III emergency response, the third-highest level of China's four-tier flood-control emergency response system, has been maintained for Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong, Henan, Fujian and Guangdong, according to the ministry.

It also maintained the Level IV emergency response, the least urgent one, for Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi and Hubei.

The ministry said it has dispatched 16 working teams to help guide typhoon-triggered flood control work in Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi, Henan, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hubei, Guangdong, Chongqing, Sichuan and the middle route of China's South-to-North Water Diversion Project.

The ministry will monitor Typhoon Doksuri lively and make flood control arrangements timely.

According to China's National Meteorological Center, from 8 p.m. Saturday to 8 p.m. Sunday, heavy downpours and rainstorms are forecast to hit Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Henan, Shandong, Anhui, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Heilongjiang and Jilin.

Minister of Water Resources Li Guoying urged on Friday relevant departments to re-deploy, re-inspect and re-implement various preventive measures, and resolutely win the hard battle against typhoon-triggered rainstorms and floods.

Typhoon Doksuri is much stronger than previous forecasts, as it has higher intensity, more sufficient water vapor and a wider range of impact, Li said at a meeting on deploying preventive measures against typhoon-triggered rainstorms and floods on Friday.

Li said relevant work should focus on the goal of "no casualties, no collapse of reservoir dams, no breach of important dikes, and no impact on important infrastructure."