28 August 2013 (CCTV) – As the Heilongjiang river records its biggest flood in over a century, another major river in the region, the Songhuajiang, has seen its flood peak reach Harbin, the provincial capital of Heilongjiang province. As the flood peak passed through Harbin Tuesday morning, it recorded the highest water level on this section of the Songhuajiang river in 15 years. At almost 120 meters, the water level is 1.39 meters above the warning line. Local flood fighting personnel stand ready to help. “Harbin is battling a high water situation. So far we have discovered 273 risks and dealt with 268 of them. ”said Sun Xianchen, deputy commander of Harbin Flood Prevention Command.

According to the flood control authorities, the 500-kilometer-long river banks around Harbin are mostly made of mud and sand, making them more susceptible to flood breaches. With the flood peak estimated to last for 10 days on this section of the river, the city has put together an 18,000 strong flood fighting force. “This flood peak will last longer than that of the 1998 floods. River banks will be easier to breach after being submerged in water. Harbin faces challenges both up and down stream on the river,” said Sun. Meanwhile, another major river in the province, the Heilongjiang, is recording the biggest flood hitting parts of it in a century. The latest aerial views show that villages and farmland in this section near Tongjiang city are covered by up to 2 meters of water. Thousands of flood fighting personnel are reinforcing water banks with sandbags. Heixiazi Island, which straddles the China-Russia border, is now completely submerged. Its Wusu Bridge, the only route between the island and the Chinese mainland, is badly damaged. Temporary residents on the island have been evacuated. Local authorities say the flood peak is now moving toward the confluence of the Heilongjiang, Songhuajiang and Nenjiang Rivers, a trend that could wreak more havoc along its path.

NE China floods threaten more people as peak reaches Harbin The aerial photo taken on 26 August 2013 shows the flooded Heixiazi Island in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. The Heilong River has swelled since mid-August, with some sections of its middle and lower reaches seeing their worst floods in history. Photo: Ma Ling / Xinhua

Beijing, China, 26 August 2013 (AFP) – The Amur River which marks the border between China and Russia has experienced its worst flooding in a century, cutting off roads to some areas, Chinese state media said Monday. The Amur, which China knows as the Heilong River, has risen since mid-August with some middle and lower sections reaching their highest levels since records began in 1896, the Xinhua news agency said. On Saturday, one station on the river measured a record high water level of 50.62 metres (167 feet), 1.31 metres more than the previous high in 1984, it said. Another station registered a high of 43.37 metres, also surpassing a 1984 record, Xinhua said. Floods had cut off roads leading to Fuyuan county, which has a population of 170,000 people and sits across the border from the Russian Far East city of Khabarovsk, the report said. Authorities in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang, on the Chinese side of the river, have ordered local governments to take steps to prevent flooding by reinforcing and inspecting flood walls, it said.

Amur flooding breaks records in China: state media The aerial photo taken on 26 August 2013 shows houses inundated by floods along the Tongjiang-Fuyuan river section of the Heilong River in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. The Heilong River has swelled since mid-August, with some sections of its middle and lower reaches seeing their worst floods in history. Photo: Ma Ling / Xinhua

By Mu Xuequan
26 August 2013 BEIJING (Xinhua) – Chinese Premier Li Keqiang discussed flood control and disaster relief with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in phone talks Monday. It was their second phone conversation in less than a week as the two countries jointly battle devastating floods that have hit eastern Russia and northeastern China this month. Medvedev told Li Russia and China had maintained good communication and carried out effective cooperation in the face of devastation rarely seen in recent history, and Russia was ready to further strengthen cooperation with China in flood control and disaster relief operations. Li said the fact China and Russia had kept close contact and coordination and their cooperation on disaster prevention and relief in the Heilongjiang River (known in Russia as the Amur) demonstrated an elevated level of the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership. The Chinese premier voiced hope Russia would exploit the advantage of its upstream reservoir to cut the flood peak and scale down the floods. China was willing to offer necessary help with Russia’s disaster relief efforts, Li said, expressing the hope that the two countries, through joint efforts, can keep the flood damage to a minimum level.

Chinese, Russian leaders talk over phone again on flood control