Wenshan set a rule that each household was entitled to 20 kilograms of drinking water everyday, and delivery service was provided to those living two or more kilometers away from water sources. Seniors, those with illnesses and disabilities, schools and hospitals enjoyed priority status in allotting quotas for water, and received it free. Meanwhile the government purchased hoses and pumps in large quantities to help villagers transport water.

As surface water and shallow underground sources dried up fast, Wenshan people had to reach deeper into the earth, a task they could hardly manage on their own. Much of the prefecture's terrain is of the Karst type, a landscape that is formed by the dissolution of soluble rocks, including limestone and dolomite. Under the layer of soil is a massive crust of hard rock that defies generic boring equipment. "Well digging can be extremely expensive here. One of a depth that costs RMB 200,000 in one area may end up costing RMB 3 million in another area," said Liu Yong, a water management official in Xichou County, where 76 percent of the land is of Karst topography.

The Ministry of Land and Resources summoned drilling teams from other provinces to Wenshan for the rescue. On March 30 the first well hit an aquifer after going down more than 170 meters. That one supplied 4,408 residents and 1,353 heads of livestock in the area. Thirteen more wells were scheduled across the prefecture.

Many enterprises closed their doors during the drought to save water for the subsistence needs of people and their herds. Food was doled out to rural families who had run through their reserves. Maguan County opened a hotline for people to f ile applications for more supplies. Meanwhile towns and townships were gearing up for the last chance to farm that year. "Seed and fertilizer companies have all stocked up. Villages less compromised by the drought are working to nurse seedlings for a late year harvest, so that we can all throw ourselves into planting the moment the rain finally comes," said Li Jiayin, magistrate of Gumu Town.

Whipsaw Blows

The Wenshan government has long relied on central budget aid for its functions. Its total revenue in 2009 was RMB 1.7 billion, while expenditures went as high as RMB 9 billion. For the drought relief campaign the prefecture received RMB 40 million from the central and provincial governments, which unfortunately didn't come anywhere close to the sum anticipated to meet all the needs. The relief work cost several million yuan every single day.

At the height of the disaster many families who had struggled to inch above the poverty line fell steeply below it again. According to Liao Yunhua, an official with the prefecture government, around 200,000 people in Wenshan are eligible for government assistance every year, but the number swelled by 180,000 after the drought struck. "The government encourages farmers to seek jobs out of the region to make up their losses in the fields," Liao said. In Xichou, for instance, approximately 70,000 farmhands, half of the county's total, were idled by the misfortune and 80 percent of them planned to try their luck in cities. To smooth their journey out of their hometown, particularly those who had no experience with factory jobs, the local agriculture department offered training courses, including legal basics, and provided a travel allowance of RMB 120 per head. Luo Zhengwen of Shangwan Village would soon join the exodus. "The debt is due, and the barn stores are nearly exhausted. My family needs cash."