HUNDREDS of reservoir dams in Sichuan Province, which were damaged by Monday’s deadly earthquake, were being repaired as troops and professionals scrambled to prevent flooding of already devastated communities, the China Daily reported Thursday.

The National Development Reform Commission, the top economic planning body, said the earthquake had damaged 391 dams. It said two of the dams were large ones, and 28 were medium-sized.

More than 2,000 troops were sent to work on the Zipingpu dam, which lies about 10 kilometers up the Minjiang River from the badly damaged city of Dujiangyan in Sichuan.

The Ministry of Water Resources has urged protection of the Zipingpu reservoir, saying Dujiangyan would be “swamped” if major problems emerged at the dam.

(SD-Agencies)