The Yangtze River Administration claims that the water level in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze is recovering thanks to the emergency release of water from the Three Gorges Reservoir. Official statistics show that at 8:00am on 22 May, the water level in the Hanjiang River, the Yangtze’s largest tributary, rose by 1.34 metres, compared with the lowest point on 15 May. At the same time, the water level in Jiujiang on the Yangtze trunkline rose by 1.1 metres.

To combat the ongoing drought, water was released from the reservoir at a rate of 10,000 cubic metres per second between 20-24 May. The rate is being increased to 11,000-12,000 cubic metres per second for the next two weeks, from 25 May to 10 June, according to official reports.

Despite these measures, the Yangtze River Waterway Bureau has closed the river to shipping between Wuhan and Yueyang because of low water levels. According to China Daily, more than 700 ships have run aground in the Yangtze since 30 April.

Drought conditions in the Yangtze region are likely to persist, according to the China Meteorological Administration, which warned on 24 May that little rain is expected in the coming 10 days. Hot, dry weather is likely to prevail over the coming week, the administration said, adding that local departments will activate cloud seeding when weather conditions are appropriate.

According to official data, rainfall in these regions is 30 to 80 per cent less compared with normal years, while the provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Shanghai municipality continue to suffer the worst drought since 1954. Between January and April, the Yangtze River basin received 40 per cent less rainfall than the average level of the past 50 years.