Thousands Flee Rising Waters

BEIJING — Tens of thousands of people fled their homes today along a rain-swollen northeastern river that officials feared would overflow its banks and cause the biggest flood in China since 1949.

More than 20,000 people already had been evacuated from areas around the Nenjiang River, which runs south from the Sino-Soviet border through Inner Mongolia and Heilongjiang province. Another 40,000 were scheduled to be moved before the river’s record-breaking waters reached the industrial city of Qiqihar.