China Quake: Over 11,000 People Injured

By Mark Stone, China Correspondent

The death toll in the Chinese earthquake is expected to rise above 200 today as rescuers find more bodies under rubble.

More than 11,000 people are confirmed to have been injured after the earthquake struck China's Sichuan province.

The Chinese news agency Xinhua said the quake, measured at varying magnitudes between 6.6 and 7.0, struck at 8.02am local time on Saturday close to the city of Ya'an in Lushan county.

The epicentre had a depth of a little less than eight miles (13km).

The quake triggered landslides and destroyed buildings. A major rescue operation involving emergency services and more than 6,000 troops has worked through the night to reach trapped people in various communities across the region.

The rescue effort is understood to have been hampered by aftershocks. Some of the tremors that followed the main quake have been almost as strong.

In one area, about 50% of buildings have been destroyed

According to local media reports, a vehicle carrying 17 soldiers fell off a cliff and into a river as it travelled to the epicentre. One soldier was killed and seven more injured, three seriously.

But extraordinary stories of survival are already emerging. According to one local media report, a mother managed to lift concrete weighing 50kg to rescue her son from the rubble.

Another report described how a woman gave birth at a bike shelter just a few hours after the quake hit.

And remarkable TV footage from one collapsed building shows rescue workers pulling a tiny baby alive from the rubble. The child's mother was also saved.

Tremors were felt in neighbouring provinces and in the provincial capital city of Chengdu. Users of Weibo, China's microblogging service, have posted images of damaged buildings and described scenes of panic as residents rushed outside.

Local seismologists registered the quake at magnitude 7.0 while the US Geological Survey (USGS) put it at 6.6.

The USGS said "significant" casualties were likely and "extensive damage is probable and disaster is likely widespread."

A Chinese general, flying over the region in a helicopter, told local media that as many as 50% of buildings in one area had collapsed.

Thousands of rescuers have been deployed

China's new Premier Li Keqiang has visited the region to survey the damage.

The quake is the first big test for the new Chinese leadership. Their ability to respond to it is likely to be scrutinised on an ever growing social media forum.

The epicentre is close to the location of the 2008 earthquake which killed 68,000 people. That quake had a greater magnitude of 7.9 but its epicentre was further underground.

The 2008 disaster destroyed large swathes of the province along with areas of neighbouring Shaanxi and Gansu. The government faced significant criticism for allowing badly constructed buildings to be erected and for covering up their failings.

This time, early indications suggest a much better level of preparedness.

Cai Jing, the Deputy Secretary-General of Sichuan's Provincial Government, attempted to reassure people at a late news conference last night.

"The main road sections in Lushan County have been reopened," he said.

"Hospitals in the province are ready to receive and transport the injured. A total of 28,971 rescuers from 95 professional rescue teams with 933 sets of equipment have been dispatched," he told reporters at the briefing in Chengdu City.

"At present, about 13,466 rescuers have arrived at the epicentre and 2,058 others are heading to the area. In addition, 13,547 rescuers are put on standby."

Better technology is also helping the authorities. For the first time, unmanned drones are being used over the disaster zone to send back pictures and assess damage.

But new technology is also putting increased pressure on the authorities. This is the first natural disaster in China in the "Weibo era". The twitter-like social media phenomenon has allowed "netizens" to openly criticise the government for failings.

International offers of assistance have already been received.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague sent the condolences of the nation.

"My thoughts are also with the Chinese authorities and the emergency services as they continue their rescue efforts. We are in contact with local authorities through our Consulate-General in Chongqing and will continue to follow the situation closely," he said.

The Russian President Vladimir Putin sent China's President Xi Jinping a telegram expressing his condolences and offering help.

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