Millions of people in China are suffering two extremes of weather, drought in the north and flooding in the south, senior officials have confirmed.
A major alert was given yesterday after a series of rainstorms in Guangdong province in southern China left 14 people dead and 1.4 million seriously affected.
More than 5,000 houses are reported to have collapsed and 200 businesses forced to close. Nearly half a million hectares of crops have been ruined and a number of major roadways destroyed.
The worst-hit area is Yangjiang City in western Guangdong, where three people died and 235,000 were evacuated from their homes.
At the same time the State Food Control and Drought Relief Headquarters (SFCDRH) warned that China was on the verge of its worst drought in 10 years.
The drought has affected 22.7 million hectares of farmland already, with a prediction of no harvest from almost 300,000 hectares. The drought also resulted in a shortage of drinking water for 15.8 million people and 11.4 million livestock.
The drought is so severe that the Vice-Premier, Mr Wen Jiabao, who heads the SFCDRH, has called for the introduction of water quotas for residential and industrial use.
Mr Wen said that in allocating water urban areas should be given priority over industry. Water use that exceeded quotas should be charged at a higher rate, and people who wasted water should be severely punished.
He said the State Council and related departments were considering contingency plans for emergency supplies to cities including Tianjin, Yantai, Weihai, Dalian, Changchun and Tangshan. Enterprises that consumed huge amounts of water and caused serious pollution should be closed.
At a meeting with drought-relief chiefs, the Vice-Premier said many regions were suffering heavy industrial and agricultural loses. Shenyang and Liaoning provinces had been hit worst by the drought.
There are reports that water for farm use has been reduced by 80 per cent in Tianjin, the fifth consecutive year of severe drought in the municipality. Grain production is expected to be down 10 per cent.
According to Mr Wen, in Inner Mongolia, which is usually a summer retreat, temperatures are 27 higher than average, resulting in water shortages.