Chinese soldiers have helped close one of the two sections of the Yellow River bank that recently collapsed in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and flooded the surrounding areas.

The river bank collapses occurred when ice dams that had blocked water flows in winter thawed and released devastating walls of water.

The dangerous, fast-moving waters have posed severe difficulties for soldiers who are trying to stop the flooding with thousands of sandbags.

Du Xin, a local official, says he appreciates the soldiers' efforts.

"The difficulties in the rescue process are beyond our expectations. It's extremely hard to place those sandbags."

The soldiers have worked continuously for more than two days to stop the flooding.

One soldier says that he just wants to get some rest.

"We have been working here for nearly 50 hours. Now all I want to do is go to bed and have a good sleep."

The soldiers closed the first section of the collapsed Yellow River bank at 2:30 a.m. on Sunday.