Rain expected to ease drought in east China

 JINAN, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Torrential rain forecast for the coming two days is expected to alleviate¹ the severe drought plaguing Shandong province, local meteorological authorities said Tuesday.

Shandong has received little rainfall since May -- 72.5 percent less than average .

A total of 21.7 million mu (1.4 million hectares) of crops in Shandong are still suffering from drought even though rain drenched² the province last week.

A total of 466,500 people and 52,600 head of livestock³ are suffering from drinking water shortages in the province.

The new round of rain, likely the heaviest this year, is forecast to sweep the province from west to east from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday night, the Shandong meteorological center said.

1 alleviate   

v.减轻，缓和，缓解(痛苦等)

参考例句：

• The doctor gave her an injection to alleviate the pain.医生给她注射以减轻疼痛。
• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。

2 drenched   

adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体）

参考例句：

• We were caught in the storm and got drenched to the skin. 我们遇上了暴雨，淋得浑身透湿。
• The rain drenched us. 雨把我们淋得湿透。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。