※  Record-setting drought plagues China's Yunnan

A severe drought has plagued Yunnan for a third consecutive year since 2010. However, this drought was upgraded to an extreme one at the beginning of 2012, leaving 3.2 million people and 1.65 million livestock short of water. A total of 8.76 million people and 676,650 hectares farmland in 125 counties all over the province were affected by the drought.

The combination of the drought and low rainfall, dried up 273 rivers and 413 small reservoirs in the province. Some plants had to halt production due to water shortage, costing losses of roughly 10 billion yuan ($1.6 million).

The drought also increased the province’s fire alert, with more than 2 million mu (133,333 hectares) of forests and 8.2 million mu of corps affected.

Related stories:

• Lingering drought disrupts lives of 6 mln in Yunnan
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• Persistent drought drains lakes in Yunnan

In pictures:

• Citizens in Yunnan suffer severe drought
• 6 mln people suffer from drought in Yunnan
• Severe drought has lingered in Yunnan for 3 years