Millions in China affected by power outages due to drought and heatwave

Dazhou (China) Dazhou (China) 17 : Millions of residents in Chinas south-western Sichuan province have been affected with continuous power outages due to extreme heat and drought, BBC reportedIn Dazhou, the capital city of Dazhou which is home to 5.

4 million people, blackouts have been extending for as long as three hours according to local media reports.

According to reports, factories in the province were ordered to cut back production or stop working because of urgent measures to divert the power supply to households.Hydropower reservoirs are down by nearly half, officials claimed.

The temperatures across Sichuan and neighboring provinces have reached 40-degrees Celsius in recent days, BBC reported.As a result, the electricity demand for air cooling in homes and offices soared which put power companies under intense pressure.

The Yangtze River - Asias longest waterway - is in record-low levels.In some areas theres been less than half of the usual amount of rain.

In Wuhan, a Wuhan city of Wuhan, Hubei province Wuhan, Hubei province, the river is at its lowest that its ever been during this time of year since records began in 1865, BBC reported.Drinking water supplies for hundreds of millions of people have not been affected, however there is a deficiency of water to irrigation crops.

Rockets for cloud seeding and pumps are in use to safeguard this years crop.