NANJING - The Huaihe River's mainstream flood crest is approaching the Hongze Lake, China's fourth biggest freshwater lake, where the water level has reached dangerous heights.

　　According to the Huaihe River Flood Control Headquarters, the water level in Hongze Lake reached 13.92 metres at 10:00pm on July 8, only 0.16 metres below the record high of 14.06 metres in 1991.

　　The Hongze Lake serves as a reservoir for the middle and lower reaches of the Huaihe River.

　　Meanwhile, flood control headquarters in East China's Jiangsu Province confirmed that the water level in the Qinhuai River continued to drop and the situation in the Yangtze River and Taihu Lake in southern Jiangsu province was stable in general.

　　More than 1.05 million hectares of croplands were reported to be water-logged in northern Jiangsu, of which 402,600 hectares were seriously affected and 64,400 hectares would give no yields this year.

　　Meteorological forecasts are for more torrential rain to hit the northern part of Jiangsu province and the Yangtze River valley from July 8 to 10.

　　Some 68,000 people living by Hongze Lake are being urgently evacuated in preparation for diverting water from the Lake.

　　Local flood control authorities are preparing to discharge flood water from the lake to Baoji and another four towns in a 194 square kilometre area.

　　By mid-week all women and children had been evacuated from the area.

　　In neighbouring Anhui Province inspection squads are being sent to supervise flood control work along the Huaihe River, according to the Anhui Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters.

　　The inspections will mainly focus on the implementation of flood-combat schemes, storage of disaster relief materials, evacuation and settlement of victims and distribution of relief funds.

　　Any individual or department who deliberately violates rules set down by the province's discipline inspection committee of the Communist Party will be punished seriously and any violations that were detected would be corrected without delay.

　　On July 7, an emergency notice was issued by the committee, requiring tighter supervision on flood control work along the Huaihe River.

　　Earlier, four people were disciplined for dereliction of duty in flood control work at the Yinkou Sluice Gate on the Huaihe River Valley.

　　Anhui Province is also stepping up its epidemic disease prevention efforts in the flooded areas, though no major outbreak of sickness has been reported.

　　Gao Kaiyan, head of the epidemic prevention team of the Anhui flood control authorities, said that by the night of July 8, there had been no reports of epidemic although some reports had come in of diarrhea in the worst flood-affected areas.

　　Gao said that the Anhui health authorities had sent 1,092 medical teams and disinfectant worth more than 1.5 million yuan (US,378) to the areas.

　　However, the prospects for preventing epidemic were not hopeful as many medical facilities in the flooded areas had been damaged and more floods were expected, Gao said.

　　The China Central Meteorological Station issued a storm warning on July 9 for the Huaihe River and the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

　　The warning was issued in view of the torrential rains to rainstorms and strong winds forecast for the valleys.

　　The affected areas include the northern part of Hunan Province, the southern and eastern parts of Hubei Province and the southeast of Henan Province in Central China, and most areas of Anhui and Jiangsu provinces in the east.

　　Meteorologists said the rainy weather was the result of the interaction of strong, warm and cold air currents.

　　The station called on the affected areas to guard against and control floods and geological disasters such as mud-rock flow and landslides.