The Yangtze River is 3,917 miles long, and it is the third longest river in the world. It flows throughout China, and it is the country’s primary source of irrigation and transportation. Unfortunately, in 1911, heavy rainfall simultaneously raised water levels of the rivers Yangtze and Huai to a dangerous point, causing the Jiangsu-Anhui flood.
Consequences of the Flood
The floods claimed the lives of about 100,000 people, and lots of properties were lost. The people of Eastern and Central China faced starvation becau
se their crops were washed away by the floods. An estimated 30,000 square miles of land was flooded forcing millions of people to become refugees. To top it all, crimes and riot cases were on the rise due to food shortage. Food was costly and limited in supply, leading to famine. At the end of October 1911, grain prices were above normal, ranging between 80 to 100%. Therefore, one million people in northern Jiangsu and other more than a million in Anhui went through mass starvation. This meant that the survivors who required relief food at the beginning of 1912 were close to 3 million.