More than 2,000 local rescue workers and 610 boats were mobilized for emergency rescue operations on Hwarong Island, and about 10,000 tonnes of sand and stones and 18 trucks were sent to seal the breach.
President Xi Jinping called for all-out rescue and relief efforts.
“Since China entered the full-scale flood season last month, some parts of the country have experienced heavy rains for long periods, leading to a serious flood control situation,” Xi told Xinhua News Agency during an official visit to Tajikistan on Friday.
“Prolonged water erosion of the dikes could lead to dangerous situations and pose serious risks and hidden dangers,” it warned.
The Ministry of Emergency Management dispatched an 800-person national rescue team, about 150 vehicles and 82 boats to the scene, while the Ministry of Finance provided 540 million yuan (US$75 million) in disaster aid.
The floods affected more than 364,000 people, submerged farmland, damaged more than 2,600 roads and bridges, and caused multiple landslides on the Pingjiang River.
Authorities in Hunan province earlier reported that 27 people were killed and eight were missing in floods across 14 cities.
Dongting Lake, a large, shallow lake in northeastern Hunan province, is a flood basin on the Yangtze River, China’s longest river and a major shipping channel. China’s Ministry of Water Resources said on Friday that it expects flooding to continue in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze for the next two weeks.
The region includes at least eight provinces as well as the cities of Shanghai and Chongqing.
02:02
China’s Yangtze River to flood for first time in 2024, causing worst damage in 25 years in some areas
China’s Yangtze River to flood for first time in 2024, causing worst damage in 25 years in some areas
According to an investigation by agriculture portal Cngrain, in Jiangxi province, another rice-producing centre like Hunan, long periods of high temperatures, humidity and heavy rain have caused ripe grains to sprout early, creating harmful conditions that could affect the harvest.
Heavy rains have caused floods and landslides in the southern province of Guangdong, killing at least 47 people, authorities said.
Senior officials in Beijing have visited affected areas and urged efforts to minimize damage and protect the autumn harvest.
Earlier this week, Premier Li Qiang visited the city of Jiujiang in eastern Jiangxi province, while Vice Premier Liu Guozhong visited the northeastern province of Heilongjiang.
In another instance of extreme weather, tornadoes struck at least two counties in the eastern province of Shandong on Friday, killing five people and injuring more than 100, state CCTV reported.
