A 164-km frozen section of the middle reaches of the Yellow River, the second longest river in China, has thawed safe, according to local official sources.

"By 8 AM Feb. 25, the river's Wuhai-Sanshenggong section in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region had completely thawed, without any untoward results," said Jing Lishan, director of the autonomous regional Yellow River Flood and Drought Control Office.

Over the past two weeks, the frozen sections of the Yellow River melted as temperatures rose in north China. Temperatures are about one to two degrees Celsius higher than the annual average in the area, he said, adding this year's thawing date came 21 days earlier than last year.

He said thawed waterways have seen a total water volume of 1.07 billion cubic meters.

So far, no ice-jam or ice flooding has occurred in the region.

China recorded the warmest year in 2006 since 1951 and over the past decades the most evident temperature rises occurred in the Inner Mongolia, according to China Meteorological Bureau.

The 5,464 km Yellow River originates in Qinghai Province and flows through Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan, before passing through Shandong and emptying into Bohai Bay.

(Xinhua News Agency February 26, 2007)