BEIJING: Thousands of reservoirs in China are “time bombs” waiting to burst, an official was quoted as saying on Friday, a day after a dam collapse forced the evacuation of 1,700 people.

“The problematic reservoirs are like time bombs, seriously threatening the lives and property of people living downstream,” said Jiao Yong, deputy minister of water resources, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

On Thursday, 1,700 people had to be evacuated from four villages after a dam in northwest China's Gansu province was breached, causing water to flood the surrounding area and destroying a highway bridge.

Jiao said all structurally unsound large, medium-sized and major small reservoirs nationwide would be repaired within three years. The government would ensure the reinforcement and safety of the reservoirs, but it was a huge task, he said.

China has more than 85,000 reservoirs, of which 30,000 have serious structural problems, including 200 large and 1,600 medium-sized dams, Xinhua said. China's dams and other efforts to control the country’s frequently treacherous rivers have a long and tragic history. In August 1975, a total of 62 dams in the central province of Henan either collapsed or were intentionally destroyed during a record rainstorm.—AFP