China's top weather official has urged forecasters to do a better job after torrential rain ripped through the nation's south with little warning, state media said Monday.
Zheng Guoguang, director of the China Meteorological Administration, urged agencies across the country to provide more accurate forecasts, especially in areas prone to weather-related disasters, according to the China Daily.
However, experts contacted by AFP expressed doubts if weather forecasting can be improved overnight by government diktat because it is a complex science which can only get better with long-term research efforts.
"Of course, the government would like weather forecasters and researchers to improve their forecast capabilities as much as they can," said Jian Maoqiu, a professor in meteorology at the Sun Yat-sen University.
"But no one can precisely tell how long it will take and to what extent it can be improved," he said.
The meteorological chief's call came after heavy rainfall that has pounded 12 southern provinces and municipalities since early June.
The rainstorm, the worst in more than a century for some regions, had killed 176 people and left 52 missing in flood-related incidents by last week, the China Daily said.
The administration has warned that most parts of the country would have rain in the coming 10 days, with some areas to experience up to 60 percent more rainfall than the average of normal years, the report said.
