Massive earthquake hits China

[Sionnach Glic]

'Thousands dead' in Chinese quake
Rescue workers dig to free someone trapped in the rubble of Juyuan Middle School in Juyuan Township of Dujiangyan City, China
Rescue workers have been trying to reach students of Juyuan Middle School

A powerful earthquake is reported to have killed at least 7,000 people in China's south-western Sichuan province, up to 5,000 of them in just one county.

Many more are feared killed and injured in other parts of the country after the quake, which had a magnitude of 7.8, struck at 1428 local time (0628 GMT).

At least 50 bodies have been recovered from the rubble of a school where an estimated 900 students were buried.

President Hu Jintao has urged "all-out" efforts to rescue victims.

The epicentre of the earthquake was about 92km (57 miles) from Chengdu, Sichuan's provincial capital.

Because the earthquake struck in the middle of the day, it is feared that many schoolchildren may be among the victims.

Cries for help

One of the worst-hit areas appears to be Beichuan county, part of the Mianyang city municipal area, about 50km from the epicentre.

Map of earthquake epicentre

Some 80% of buildings there were reported to have been destroyed, leaving between 3,000 and 5,000 people dead and up to 10,000 injured.

Meanwhile hundreds of people were reported to have been buried in two collapsed chemical plants in Shifang in Sichuan, and at least five other schools were reported to have collapsed.

And there are fears the death toll could turn out to be much higher once the damage in Wenchuan county - the epicentre - is assessed, says BBC China analyst Shirong Chen.

The area is very rugged, full of mountains and valleys and a number of roads are connected with bridges from one mountain top to the next, he says.


RECENT CHINA QUAKES
March, 2008: 7.2 quake in Xinjiang - damage limited
February 2003: 6.8 quake in Xinjiang - at least 94 dead, 200 hurt
January 1998: 6.2 quake in rural Hebei - at least 47 dead, 2,000 hurt
April 1997: 6.6 quake hits Xinjiang - 9 dead, 60 hurt
January 1997: 6.4 quake in Xinjiang - 50 dead, 40 hurt

In pictures: China earthquake
'Buried teenagers crying for help'

There were harrowing reports from the scene of a school collapse in Dujiangyan city - about 100km (60 miles) from the epicentre - where 900 students were buried and 50 dead.

Teenagers buried beneath the rubble of the three-storey Juyuan Middle School building were struggling to break free, while others were crying out for help, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Parents were watching as cranes excavated the site. Villagers rushed to help with the rescue.

Two girls said they escaped because they had "run faster than others".

Fast response

Dozens of aftershocks have been reported since the quake, which was felt in Beijing, 1,545km (960 miles) away, and the Thai capital Bangkok, 1,800km (1,200 miles) away.

It was the strongest to hit Sichuan province in more than 30 years, Xinhua said.

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The province is the most populated part of China - home to 87 million people.

State television said the quake had not caused major damage to Chengdu, which has a population of more than 10 million people, or to the nearby Three Gorges Dam.

Troops and helicopters have been sent to help with relief work.

The BBC's Quentin Somerville says this is probably the the most significant natural disaster to hit China in recent memory, but that the Chinese army has a good record of mobilising and getting people to safety.

He also says it is one of the most open and speedy responses to an emergency he has ever seen from Chinese state media.

The quake was felt as far away as Beijing, he says, meaning millions of people will feel connected to the disaster and will be watching TV screens closely to see how the government responds.

[Tsukiyumi]

Yeah, I heard about this on the news earlier. I wonder if they'll accept outside aid...

[Teaos]

With the Olympics coming up they have to put on a good front.

But then on the other hand they may try and cover up the damage and pretend it didnt happen.

[Tsukiyumi]

With the Olympics coming up they have to put on a good front.

But then on the other hand they may try and cover up the damage and pretend it didnt happen.

"Earthquake? What earthquake? Did you hear about an earthquake, Jin Hua?"

" No, I sure didn't, Ja Cheung."

*whistling*

[Monroe]

What's with all these earth quakes and other natural disasters lately? jeesh

[Tsukiyumi]

If I were a Christian, I'm sure I'd say something like, " It's God's will" or some such.

I'm going with, " It's an active planet. Stuff like this happens on active planets. Good thing it is an active planet, or we'd have no magnetosphere to shield us from extreme cosmic and solar radiation which would kill all life on the planet."

[sunnyside]

In part I think it's just that these days if a natural disaster hits anywhere on the planet everybody knows about it.

Seriously I think with the cyclone there are people all over the world hearing about Burma for the first time.

[Mikey]

In part I think it's just that these days if a natural disaster hits anywhere on the planet everybody knows about it.

Seriously I think with the cyclone there are people all over the world hearing about Burma for the first time.

Don't you mean "Myanmar," George?

Yeah, globalization of media has made it seem that these things happen more often; but an earthquake in China - on the rim of an active tectonic plate - should hardly be surprising.

What also wouldn't surprise me is China also refusing outside aid, in an attempt to affect the air that they can handle everything internally, and need no outside assistance.

[sunnyside]

Don't you mean "Myanmar," George?

Only if you're down with the State Law and Order Restoration Council that changed the name. The new name is not entirely accepted.

EDIT: Forgot the "not" there somehow.

[Duskofdead]

Don't you mean "Myanmar," George?

Only if you're down with the State Law and Order Restoration Council that changed the name. The new name is entirely accepted.

In a "political statement" sense when it comes to the name, either way you're using a name that kind of sucks. The letter "r" doesn't really exist in the Burmese language anyway, it was something the British threw into their language and place-names on purpose when they colonized it. When Burmese people say the word it's actually more like Boomah.

[RK_Striker_JK_5]

Stuff like this happens all the time. It's the way of nature. We live on a powder keg.

[Teaos]

What's with all these earth quakes and other natural disasters lately? jeesh

Global warming...