Top Chinese leaders have urged local governments and officials to prioritize people's safety in the country's current fight against floods, which swept China since late last week, said the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters on June 24.

President Hu Jintao, also General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), urged governments at all levels to be conscientious in their service to the people and in the flood-control fight.

Careful safety check should be done to dikes and reservoirs, and any hidden threat must be dealt with in time, Hu said.

He said people live under threat of floods must be evacuated to safe places, full preparations for flood control should be done, and the emergency response mechanism be improved.

Premier Wen Jiabao, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said duty in flood control work must be defined clearly among local officials.

He said people's safety must be guaranteed.

Wen also said big rivers and major reservoirs should be under intensive monitoring, and the safety of major cities and roads should be taken as a priority.

In crucial areas, hydrologic stations and weather stations should strengthen monitoring, Wen said

The Ministry of Civil Affairs said Friday that so far this year, floods and ensuing calamities have caused 567 people dead, 165 missing and the emergency relocation of 2.46 million people in the country, resulting in direct economic losses of 22.9 billion yuan (about 2.77 billion dollars).

The southern and eastern parts of the country suffered the severest floods this summer.

Statistics from the ministry said that floods had caused 124 people dead, 69 missing and the emergency relocation of 1.52 million people in the country's south and east by 4:00 p.m. Friday, according to the latest statistics.

The statistics, which covered Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan and Guangdong provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, indicated a total of 18.85 million people have been affected by serious floods, landslides and mudslides since mid-June. The direct economic losses amount to 13.3 billion yuan (about 1.6 billion US dollars).

The loss from floods of this period is heavier than the average level of the same periods since the 1990s, but still below the level in 1991 and 1998, according to sources with the ministry.

Source: Xinhua