China earmarks over 3b yuan for flood affected provinces

Rescuers help evacuate stranded people at the entry to an expressway in flood-hit Zhengzhou, central China's Henan province, July 23, 2021. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING – China's central government has earmarked 3.07 billion yuan (about $480 million) to support the flood-affected provinces of Henan, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu.

The fund will be used for flood control, disaster relief and the reconstruction of destroyed buildings in these regions.

The Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Emergency Management had previously allocated 1.14 billion yuan to these provinces for the same purpose.

China has seen more severe flooding in 2021 than in previous years, with 590 people dead or missing as a result of floods in the first 10 months of the year, according to a recent press conference.

A total of 58.9 million people were affected by flooding in China in the January-October period, and 3.52 million people were evacuated to safe places. Some 203,000 houses collapsed due to floods during the period.

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