Beijing tried to ease strains with Moscow over a river-borne toxic spill flowing toward Russia by today promising to send filtering materials, while five more Chinese cities prepared to stop drawing water from the river.

Residents of a town along a poisoned river in northern China today queued with jugs and buckets to get water from trucks after officials shut down running water to 26,000 people.

ANOTHER town on a poisoned Chinese river shut down its water system yesterday as a toxic slick caused by a chemical plant explosion arrived and the country’s health minister warned that the spill was still a major problem.

Another town on a poisoned Chinese river shut down its water system today as a toxic slick caused by a chemical plant explosion arrived.