PRECAUTIONS ON YANGTSE

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25445, 17 March 1948, Page 5

PRECAUTIONS ON YANGTSE

NATIONALISTS FEAR COMMUNIST MOVE (Rec. 8 p.m.) SHANGHAI, March 15? All the Chinese Government forces along the Yangtse river were put on the alert to-day to prevent Communist forces from crossing to the south side of this vital Central China defence line. This precautionary measure followed reports that the Communists had established a “central headquarters” in Yencheng, about 200 miles north of the provincial capital of Kiangsu, in preparation for a drive to capture the Yangtse ports and cross the river. The Nationalist defences at ail strategic points along the Yangtse. including Cninkiang, which is 30 miles northeast of Nanking, have been strengthened.

Crucial battles continue to rage in Manchuria, Honan, and Shantung.

Floods in South Africa.— After the heaviest rains for years, the Orange river, dividing the Orange Free State and the Cape Province, is in flood. Many motorists are stranded, farmhouses are isolated, and burst dams have waterlogged farmlands. Aerodromes have been affected and aeroplanes have had to be diverted.— Bloemfontein, March 15.