The end of last week saw the Chinese Government issue more flood warnings with that water now hitting the Three Gorges Dam along the swollen Yangtze River.

The dam in Yichang City, Hubei Province could, according to engineers, beat its record high of the year of 158.86 meters or 13.86 meters above the flood warning line.

More than 700 people have so died this year in the floods - with the flow of the Yangtze reaching 70,000 cubic meters a second about 20,000 cubic meters more than the flow during the 1998 floods which left more than 4000 people dead.

Chinese premier Wen Jiabo told local authorities to be fully aware of the 'grave flood-control situation' and to prepare for more serious flooding.

Authorities in two Chinese provinces that the Hanjiang River, the largest branch of the swollen Yangtze River, flows through issued fresh flood warnings last Friday.

Luke Walsh