BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged all-out rescue and relief work to safeguard people's lives and property after a dike breach in Dongting Lake in central China's Hunan province which occurred Friday afternoon.
READ MORE: Record rain, floods hit parts of Hunan province
Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an instruction.
Xi emphasized that since China entered the main flood season, some areas in the country have experienced heavy rainfall for a prolonged duration, leading to a severe flood control situation
On Friday afternoon, a dike of the Dongting Lake burst in Tuanzhou township, Huarong county under Hunan's Yueyang city, causing flooding in the area. All the local people affected have been safely evacuated.
READ MORE: Town besieged by floodwaters is calling for reinforcements
Xi, who is on a foreign visit, stressed that people in threatened areas should be evacuated in a timely manner and properly resettled, adding that all-out rescue work should be carried out to protect the safety of people's lives and property. He asked the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters to dispatch a team to strengthen guidance.
Xi emphasized that since China entered the main flood season, some areas in the country have experienced heavy rainfall for a prolonged duration, leading to a severe flood control situation. The prolonged water erosion of embankments may result in dangerous situations, posing significant risks and hidden dangers.
Relevant local Party committees, governments and departments should take prompt action and mobilize forces to carry out flood prevention, disaster relief and emergency rescue work. They should strengthen inspections of embankments and promptly identify and address any potential risks to ensure safety, Xi said.
Rescue team deployed
A work team has been dispatched to central China's Hunan province to guide rescue efforts after a dike breach in the country's second-largest freshwater lake on Friday afternoon, according to the Ministry of Emergency Management.
READ MORE: China issues red alert for mountain torrents as rainstorms persist
More than 800 people from the China National Comprehensive Fire and Rescue Team, 146 vehicles and 82 boats have been sent to the scene, according to the ministry.
An additional 50 rescue workers, along with 30 sets of equipment and a water engineering rescue team from the provincial capital Changsha, have been deployed to block the breach. Surveying drones and remote sensing satellites are being used to collect images of the breach and the surrounding affected area, the ministry said.
