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Floods bring disaster, malnutrition to China
Month of rains leaves more than 1,800 dead
August 5, 1996
Web posted at: 8:45 p.m. EDT (0045 GMT)BEIJING (CNN) -- Residents in southeastern China trudge through the ruins of what used to be their homes. Now they face the daunting task of rebuilding, after monthlong rains wreaked havoc on the area. But with limited rations, the reconstruction could prove fatal.
Torrential storms have left the region a wasteland, killing more than 1,800 people and leaving tens of millions homeless. Homes, roads, hospitals and commercial districts were destroyed, swept away by rains.
Officials fear the death toll could rise due to malnutrition. Five million tons of grain were destroyed by the floods, and much of this fall's harvest was ruined.
In China's Guangxi province, the government has handed out the equivalent of four bowls of rice per person per day. Such small portions could leave residents malnourished as they try to rebuild, according to authorities.
"The situation is described by our team members as a catastrophe," said Geoffrey Prescott of Medecins sans Frontiers, an international relief agency.
Co-worker Marcel Roux added, "The rice ration is tiny compared to the amount of work they have to do."
Authorities already have seen a rise in dysentery in some of the flooded areas. The relief agencies, meanwhile, are working to provide temporary shelter for the displaced residents. They're also trying to clean out contaminated wells. Another major challenge is gathering enough medical supplies in regions where hospitals were swept away.
Roux described the scene as wretched. "You see some people digging to try to find some piece of food, piece of clothes, even some seed," he said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- Typhoon Herb pounds southeastern China
- Flooding takes heavy toll in China, India and Bangladesh
- Asian floods kill 1,100
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