China earmarks 150 million yuan for natural disaster response

BEIJING, July 9 (Xinhua) -- China has earmarked 150 million yuan (about 20.97 million U.S. dollars) from its central natural-disaster-relief fund to support relief efforts in regions affected by flooding, typhoons and geological disasters, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said on Wednesday.

An MOF statement said that emergency funds, allocated by the MOF and the Ministry of Emergency Management, were distributed to six provincial-level regions: Zhejiang, Fujian, Sichuan, Chongqing, the Xizang Autonomous Region and Gansu.

As China has now entered its main flood season, certain regions have been hit frequently by flooding and geological disasters, and Danas -- the fourth typhoon of this year -- has impacted several southeastern coastal regions and caused secondary disasters, the MOF said.

The funds will be used to support emergency rescue and relief efforts, focusing on search, rescue and relocation for residents affected by disasters. They will also be used for the detection of secondary disasters, and to repair damaged houses, among other tasks.