A farmer displays dead paddy seedlings on a dried-up paddy field in Zhaoping County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region August 1, 2007. Local residents are experiencing a once-in-a decade severe drought due to continuous searing heat and shortages of rainfall, which has left large swathes of farmland cracked and crowds of residents thirsty for sufficient drinking water.

Dead paddy seedlings are pictured on a dried-up paddy field in Zhaoping County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region August 1, 2007.

Cars drive along a flooded street in Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province August 2, 2007. More than 700 people have been killed in floods so far this summer.

A motocyclist pushes her motocycle through a flooded street in Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province August 2, 2007. More than 700 people have been killed in floods so far this summer.

A general view shows the landslide on a mountain in Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County, southwest China's Sichuan Province, July 31, 2007. The landside started on July 28, destroying an old street and leaving 700 local residents displaced from their homes.

(China Daily August 3, 2007)