Local authorities said 2,978 barrels have been retrieved as of noon time Friday after they were swept by rain-triggered floods into the Songhua River in northeast China.

About 4,000 others were still to be recovered, said officials with Jilin Provincial Government.

Eight stations had been set up for the retrieval work, and the focus would be in the province's Yushu, Fuyu and Songyuan, where the Songhua River enters Heilongjiang Province.

The official said the province would strive to recover all of the barrels within the territory of Jilin Province.

A water test conducted early Thursday morning showed the river water was not contaminated.

Some 3,000 full barrels -- filled with 170 kilograms of chemical liquid each -- and 4,000 empty ones were swept into the waterway after floods hit warehouses of two chemical factories in Jilin City, Jilin Province, Wednesday morning.

(Xinhua News Agency July 30, 2010)