Civil affairs authorities in south China's Guangdong Province are coordinating all available resources to help flood-affected farmers as weather conditions in the hardest hit areas finally eased on Friday.

"There have been no new reports of fatalities today and all flood-hit areas had better weather," said Liu Zhiwei, an official with the provincial civil affairs authority.

The provincial weather bureau also predicted better weather conditions this weekend, but warned of possible heavy rainfall next week.

"We're distributing relief goods to affected farmers, and now is a crucial time for us to help them get back to their farms," Liu said.

Sources with the provincial civil affairs department said flooding caused by heavy rains over the past week had killed at least 23 people in Guangdong and affected up to 2.33 million people.

"A great number of affected people are from poor mountainous counties in the eastern area," Liu said.

"It will be very difficult for them to live through the hard days after the flood."

A number of enterprises, including the Beijing-based China Huaneng Group, have donated relief funds.

In Fengshun, a hardest-hit mountainous county in eastern Guangdong, the local government has distributed up to 169 tons of rice to affected villagers.

"But more food is needed over the long term since farmers lost almost everything after the flood," Lu Shengwen, a media official with the county government, said.

"They will also not be able to harvest anything for the coming three months since crops have been destroyed here."

Lu estimated 2,350 tons of rice worth up to 8 million yuan was to be needed for affected farmers.

(China Daily June 16, 2007)