Following the dike breach, a large volume of water from Dongting Lake rushed into the Tuanzhou dike region, flooding 47.6 square kilometers of the region's total area of 55 sq km.

At least 7,000 residents were evacuated after the dike burst.

Several local schools have been turned into temporary shelters, housing about 4,000 residents and providing essential items such as quilts, towels and buckets to disaster victims. Professional medical personnel are available around the clock to those who have been displaced.

"Our home was affected twice. Back in 1996, there was another flood and then this year. I think the resettlement process is now very good," Tuanzhou resident Cai Shusheng told China Global Television Network.