9000 people evacuated as water level rises in China reservoir

More than 9,000 people were evacuated today from Golmud City in northwest China's Qinghai province as water level continued to rise in a nearby reservoir following days of heavy rains.

More than 9,000 people were evacuated on Sunday from Golmud City in northwest China's Qinghai province as water level continued to rise in a nearby reservoir following days of heavy rains.

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The municipal government has set up 900 tents, four toilets and tap water supply for the evacuated people from 2,000 families near the Wenquan Reservoir, Golmud Mayor Zhu Jianping said.

The government also approved 53 businesses to sell food and other daily supplies in the evacuation sites on condition that the goods are sold at fair prices.

Leakage has been reported in the embankment of the Wenquan reservoir, 127 km from urban Golmud.

If it collapses, the city with a population of 205,700 could be flooded by waters up to 4 meters deep.

The city's power and water plants are also at risk, the municipal government said in a previous statement.

The Qinghai-Tibet railway, the world's highest railway, could also be hit by flood waters as it is only 40 km away from the reservoir, Xinhua reported.

The reservoir's water level is still rising as rains are pounding the area and the snow on nearby mountains continues to melt with climbing temperatures.

Meanwhile, a 1.3-magnitude earthquake hit Golmud City at 1:35 am on Saturday. The epicentre of the quake was 60 km from the reservoir, according to a statement from the provincial seismological bureau.

"The bureau is paying close attention to the seismological activities near the reservoir and has found no evidence of strong quake so far," it said.