Rescuers carry an injuried child on a stretcher after a 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit... Read More
Torrential rains slowed rescue
efforts after a magnitude-6.5 earthquake killed at least 381
people in southwest China, as Premier Li Keqiang flew to the
region to oversee the response to the disaster. Three people remained missing in the region around the city of Zhaotong in the southwestern province of Yunnan, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. The quake, which hit yesterday afternoon, injured 1,801 and destroyed at least 12,000 homes, it said.
Efforts to help those injured and left without homes will be slowed because many roads were blocked and rain was forecast for the next four days. More than 2,500 troops have been sent to the area, and damage to bridges and roads meant rescuers had to reach affected areas by foot, according to Xinhua.
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for all-out efforts to reach those who may be trapped and to treat those injured. Li was en-route to Yunnan, as were two military helicopters and two cargo planes.
The quake, which was felt strongly in most of Yunnan, will cause “relatively serious destruction,” the China Earthquake Administration said in a statement. The tremor is the biggest in the province since a quake hit Yao’an county in January 2000, Xinhua reported, citing an unidentified person at the provincial earthquake bureau.
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