More than 800,000 people are without drinking water in western Guangdong Province because of the continuing drought.
Zhanjiang and Maoming cities have been hardest hit.
Many domestic animals have died because of the desert conditions, according to sources from the Guangdong Provincial Bureau of Water Conservation yesterday.
Water reserves in Zhanjiang now stand at just 474 million cubic metres, a reduction of 55.9 per cent from more than 950 million cubic metres last year.
Only 230 million cubic metres can be diverted or used for agricultural irrigation.
"Zhanjiang's drinking water supplies will last less than a month unless effective measures are taken immediately to open more water resources," said an official from the Guangdong Provincial Bureau of Water Conservation.
"The autumn harvest will also be affected in western Guangdong if the drought gets worse over the next few months," the official said.
Six of 21 medium-sized reservoirs and 362 of 598 small ones in Zhanjiang have now dried up, said the official.
Reservoirs
Water in reservoirs in Zhanjiang is sinking by 10 million cubic metres a day.
Many local waterworks have now stopped production because of the drought.
More than 200,000 hectares of farmland have been affected in Zhanjiang and Maoming, where agriculture is an essential part of the economy.
Fan Rijin, a farmer in Lianjiang County, said this year's severe drought would certainly affect his harvest and annual income.
Fan, 42, who has an orchard of oranges in Lianjiang, said some of his trees are withering.
He says he is praying for rain.
As well as spending more, the Zhanjiang city government is urgently taking other measures to deal with the disaster.
More than 500,000 soldiers, officials and residents have been sent to the frontline to fight the drought.
More than 20,000 water pumps are now working night and day to provide water for residents.
The Zhanjiang government has so far spent more than 50 million yuan (US$6 million) in alleviating drought since the end of last year.
The city has launched more than 100 rockets to seed the clouds and produce rain since November.
There has been less than 600 millimetres of rain in Zhanjiang since September, 75 per cent less than the previous year.
Xuwen County, which is administered by the Zhanjiang city government, has had no rainfall for as many as 238 days.
(Source: China Daily 05/24/2005)