A MAN STRUGGLES THROUGH FLOOD WATERS TO RESCUE PLA TROOP IN CHANGSHA

PEK06:CHINA-FLOOD:CHANGSHA,CHINA,29JUL98 - Zhou Fei (R) struggles through flood waters to rescue a boat full of People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers caught amongst tree branches in Changsha in China's central Hunan province July 27. Zhou rescued the troops, among whom was a PLA general, by breaking a window, and cutting lengths of rope with the glass shards, and then using the rope to pull the trapped boat to safety. Floods have killed 2,500 people this year, China said on Wednesday as a surging crest of water on the swollen Yangtze River threatened to burst embankments on its lower reaches. The new death toll almost doubles the previous figure of 1,270. (CHINA OUT NO ARK) nb/Xinhua/Photo by Li Gang REUTERS