Forecasters warned yesterday against floods and landslides in western China, with two farmers killed and twelve others missing from two villages in Hubei and Sichuan after continuous rain.

The flash flood swept through parts of Zhongshan Village in Mabian County in the early hours on Sunday, according to the provincial disaster relief office. Roads and telecommunications facilities were also damaged, the office said.

On the same day in central China's Hubei Province, eight farmers went missing after a landslide pummeled Dayantang Village. Fifteen houses collapsed into a river after being hit by a huge landslide, a local official said. The farmers were tilling fields when the massive slide swept them away.

In recent weeks, heavy rains and floods have lashed the nation's densely populated south and east. The China Meteorological Administration has now shifted its focus to the west, where heavy downpours are predicted.

In the northwestern Ningxia region, landslides are a threat after a rainstorm on Friday hit Xiji County, threatening the safety of 234 villagers.

The Ningxia meteorological station issued red warnings of rainstorms, alerting residents to the danger of possible floods in the southern mountainous areas of the region.

The rains could relieve drought in the often parched northwest, the administration said on its website (www.nmc.gov.cn).

"But as the ecological system of the west is quite weak, the relevant authorities must strengthen flood-response work," it said. "The rains may create localized flooding and mudslides."

As of Friday, floods have this year claimed 128 lives, with a further 24 people still missing, the national flood and drought authority was quoted by Xinhua as saying.

The direct economic loss of the floods from destroyed houses, lost crops, and other damage is now 8.92 billion yuan (US$1.17 billion), the Ministry of Civil Affairs said. It has allocated 100 million yuan (US$13.11 million) to help victims, Xinhua said.

Meanwhile, other parts of the country are suffering from drought and scorching temperatures. Chinese scientists have warned global warming is likely to lead to more extreme weather in the decades to come.

As of last Thursday, 10.91 million people were said to be without drinking water because of the widespread and prolonged drought.

The drought has hit 11 million hectares of arable land and 8 million hectares of crops in most parts of northern China and some parts of southwestern Chongqing, Sichuan, and Yunnan provinces.

The acreage of arable land affected by drought is about 1 million hectares more than the average for previous years, according to the Office of the State Flood Control and Draught Relief Headquarters.

(Xinhua News Agency, China Daily, June 18, 2007)