What happened when the Nationalist government broke the Yellow River dikes in 1938?

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Anhui Pine branch framing peaks in the Huang Mountains, Anhui province, China.

In 1938, the Chinese Nationalist government, led by Chiang Kai-shek, intentionally destroyed the Yellow River dikes near Zhengzhou and Kaifeng in Henan province. This drastic military action was taken in an effort to halt the advance of Japanese invaders during the Second Sino-Japanese War.123

The resulting floodwaters surged south toward Hongze Lake on the border of Anhui, inundating a vast area of land. This catastrophic event caused between 500,000 and 900,000 deaths. The dikes were not rebuilt until 1946–47, at which point the river was successfully rediverted to its former course to empty into the Bo Hai.31