Up until July 10, more than 505,000 homes had collapsed and 1.33 million houses had been damaged by floods that have mainly occurred in central, east and southern China since mid-May, the Civil Affairs Ministry said in its latest report.

At least 2.29 million people have been evacuated while economic losses nationwide have risen to 39.87 billion yuan (4.8 billion dollars).

The flooding has mainly occurred in two periods, the ministry said, the first being in mid-May when southern China, including Jiangxi, Fujian, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi and Guizhou provinces were hit by torrential rains.

Since June 20, those areas and five other provinces in central China, including Anhui, Henan and Jiangsu, which bound the central Huai River valley, have also been inundated by incessant storms.

More than 260 fatalities have occurred since June 20 as rains in southern Guizhou and in Chongqing municipality sent torrents of water gushing down mountain passes, destroying homes and crops.

In the Huai River valley the water levels have reached their highest in 10 years, and the government has evacuated farming communities and blown up dykes in an attempt reduce the amount of water in the swelling river.

"In comparison to the same time last year, this year's flood disaster has been worse in the areas affected, fatalities, number of houses collapsed and economic losses," the ministry said.

"So far it has not reached the level of the big disaster of 1991 or the big disaster of 1998," it said.

Some 4,150 people died in 1998 when huge stretches of the Yangtze River overflowed. In 1991, 5,113 people perished, according to the office of the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

Since 1991, China has averaged annually some 3,750 deaths due to floods.

The flood season usually peaks in late August and early September.

President Hu ordered a stepping up of efforts to tackle the disaster, while the central government warned local leaders they were responsible for ensuring that damage is minimized.

Hu's comments were pasted on the front pages of all major Chinese dailies as the government announced the annual flood season was in full swing.

"Responsible comrades at all levels of party and government and every department must strengthen leadership ... and in order to win the battle must prepare for even larger floods and ensure that anti-flood work and disaster relief efforts are victorious," Hu was quoted as saying.

Vice Premier Hui Liangyu, in charge of anti-flood efforts, added that "each area would be held responsible" for battling the seasonal phenomenon.

Despite a rising death toll in the southern areas of Chongqing municipality and Guizhou, Hunan, Sichuan and Guangxi provinces, government officials appeared more concerned with flooding along the Huai River which has suffered from 400 millimeters (16 inches) of rain since June 20.

Economic losses to the Huai River region have hit 18 billion yuanbillion dollars), the Civil Affairs Ministry said, bringing disaster to an area that is home to 150 million people and is one of China's major food basket regions.

China's central meteorological station predicted continued rains for Saturday.

In a separate report, the Xinhua news agency said that waters in the middle reaches of the Yangtze, China's longest river, would surpass warning levels around Dongting lake on Sunday.

TERRA.WIRE