Casualties from floods drop by 55%

Despite heavy rains, better forecasting, evacuation, conservancy show results

China has experienced a sharp decrease in flood-related casualties this year despite the highest level of precipitation in almost six decades in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, flood control officials said.

About 63.5 million people across the country have been affected by floods this year, up 12.7 percent from the average of the past five years. Direct economic losses have reached almost 179 billion yuan ($25.8 billion), up 15.5 percent during that same time, said Zhou Xuewen, vice-minister of both the emergency management and water resources ministries.

The number of people left dead or missing, however, decreased by 54.8 percent from the five-year average to 219, he said at a news conference organized by the State Council Information Office on Thursday.