Beijing, Aug 16 (IANS): A severe drought since July 15 has affected more than 1.38 million people in China's Jiangxi province, local authorities said Tuesday.

Drought conditions triggered by sustained hot weather and low precipitation has impacted 83 counties in 11 cities of Jiangxi, Xinhua news agency reported citing the provincial flood control and drought relief headquarters as saying.

It added that a total of 11,000 people had difficulties accessing drinking water, while approximately 141,100 hectares of crops had been damaged due to water shortage.

The provincial meteorological observatory issued a red alert for excessive heat at 7.35 a.m. Tuesday, forecasting that the temperature is expected to exceed 37 degrees Celsius in the next 24 hours.

China's State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management have formulated specific flood control and drought relief plans to prevent casualties.

China has earmarked 200 million yuan of disaster relief funds to support drought relief work.