China Mourned Yushu Earthquake Victims

04/25/2010 20:30:20

A devastating earthquake rocked Yushu County, the township of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai Province in Western China, on the early morning of April 14, 2010. China has summoned people in the nation to do whatever they could to help the victims in the stricken areas, and held a national mourning ceremony for those who passed away in Yushu Earthquake on April 25.

                The Ruins of Residences                                                                      Collapsing House

The massive quake, estimated to have a magnitude of 7.1 Level, struck the small town at 7:49 a.m. when most locals were still in their sleep, and had caused huge damage and casualty. Thousands of houses, factories, school buildings and other architectures collapsed, some even flattened. It was said that up to 80 percent structures in the surrounding areas of the epicenter had been shaken down. Power failed and water surpply suspended due to broken facilities in the rock. 2220 people killed, 70 missing and more than 12 thousand were injured in the nightmare, China's main media Xinhua Agency reported yesterday. No foreigners had been killed or injured in the quake.

A Survivor finding useful items at his flattened home           A mother praying with her frightened son after quake

Just after striking, China has acted up and specified the rescue plan. President Hu Jintao returned to Beijing and presided the rescue, shortening the BRICs (abbreviation for Brazil, Russia, India and China) Conference in Brasilia and putting off the official visits to several South American countries. Premier Wen Jiabao flew to Yushu immediately and supervised the rescue operations. Hundreds of rescue teams, consisting of quake experts, rescue professionals, military forces, doctors and medical assistants, drivers and volunteers, had been group up soon and marched into the heavily-afflicted areas to search survivors in the ruins, care the wounded, provide temporary housing to them and prepare for reconstruction. At present, rescue in the town had been accomplished and search teams deepened their life-saving work into the remote villages in the countryside.

President Hu Jintao visiting the stricken area                          Soldiers searching for survivors in the ruins

People from other parts of China also tried their ultimate to help the quake suffers: millions of RMB (Chinese currency), thousands of tents, clothes and quilts were donated by people from all works of life; hundreds of tons of medicines and medical facilities were delivered to Yushu county; foods and bottled water were non-stop transferred there truck by truck. Victims in the stricken area now are well taken cared of and relived somehow from the fearful moment.

Volunteers carrying the wounded to the hospital             Hundreds of ambulences transported to Yushu by rail

A national mourning ceremony for the victims was held all over China. At the ceremony, Chinese flags flew only at half mast across the country; tens of thousands of governmental officials, soldiers, workers and well-wisher gather in silent tribute to the dead in the earthquake; newspapers drained their pages and websites of color; all entertainment programs were suspended for one day in the nation. All of these are to express the country's profound condolences.

Chinese flag half-hung on mast at Tiananmen Square        A child donating all his pin-money with his mother

Yushu people, who had survived from the disaster, wiped out their tears on their cheeks, buried their past beloveds and begin to reconstruct their new home by their hands, with the help of the nation as well as foreign assistings. Yushu and Yushu people are more confident in the future and  sure will soon recover from this natural disaster.

              CCTV Donation Raising Party                               Yushu people are more confident in the future

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