Drought, Deluge, Heat Alert and a Billion-Dollar Typhoon

China Issues Heat Alert

A heatwave was forecast to hit central, eastern and northern China with temperatures rising to as much as 40 degrees Celsius, said The National Meteorological Center (NMC), Reported Xinhua, the country’s official news agency.

“Since mid-May, some northern regions have been suffering from drought due to continued hot weather. Miyun Reservoir, one of Beijing’s major water sources, has shrunk about 39 percent over the past year,” said the report.

“The upcoming heat wave will even worsen the drought. Local governments should work to reduce its impact on agricultural production,” said the weather observatory in China.

Meanwhile, Typhoon CHAN-HOM dumped as much as 322 mm of rain on parts of eastern China, affecting at least 1.92 million people in nine cities, including more than 1.11 million who were evacuated, said the report.

CHAN-HOM  caused direct economic losses of about a billion dollars, according to the provincial flood control and drought prevention HQ.

“The worst hit sector is agriculture with economic losses of 3.62 billion yuan, because the typhoon coincided with the picking period of vegetables and melons and wrecked havoc on agricultural facilities,” said the HQ.

Water level in many rivers and lakes are still above the warning lines, with more damaged expected from potential floods and mudslides.