Over 150 dead, thousands injured in China quake; massive rescue underway

More than 150 people have been dead and thousands injured after a strong quake struck southwest China's Sichuan Province Saturday morning, triggering massive rescue and relief efforts throughout the nation.

The 7.0-magnitude earthquake hit Lushan county of Ya'an City at 8:02 a.m. Beijing Time. A total of 157 people were confirmed dead as of 9 p.m. according to the China Earthquake Administration.

More than 5,600 people were injured, including some 400 severely hurt, according to figures provided by the Sichuan provincial government. It is estimated that about 140,000 people need to be relocated.

The epicenter of the quake, with a depth of 13 km, was monitored at 30.3 degrees north latitude and 103.0 degrees east longitude. It is one of the most destructive earthquakes in China in recent years. A 8.0-magnitude quake in Wenchuan county in Sichuan Province left 87,000 dead or missing in May 12, 2008.

Most of the old brick-wood houses were destroyed by the earthquake and parts of the brick-concrete houses were seriously damaged, according to Xinhua reporters at Gucheng village of Longmen township, the epicenter of the quake.

Soldiers are racing against time in search of survivors in the debris in the village.

Among some 7,000 houses in Longmen township, 5,000 collapsed in the quake, the head of the township government Chen Gang told Xinhua.

Hundred of tents have arrived at the village but the villagers still need 8,000 more, he said.

Ya'an has a population of 1.53 million and is known as the hometown of the giant panda. It is about 140 kilometers away from the provincial capital Chengdu and about 250 km from Wenchuan.

President Xi Jinping on Saturday ordered all-out measures to rescue victims and minimize casualties soon after the quake. He asked to strengthen seismic monitoring, take concrete steps to prevent secondary disasters, properly relocate people affected by the disaster, and maintain social stability of the quake zone.

The Communist Party of China Central Committee and Xi entrusted Premier Li Keqiang to direct the quake-relief work, who arrived at the quake-zone in the afternoon.

Li took a helicopter to the epicenter and called a meeting at around 6 p.m. at the front-line headquarters in Longmen township.

"Life is the most important thing and the top priority is saving lives, " Li said. No minute or even second should be delayed during the "golden rescue period" in the first 72 hours after the quake.

He urged rescuers to examine every house to ensure all the injured residents are saved amid continuous aftershocks. He also ordered the guarantee of accommodation, food and safe water for residents in the quake zone as well as measures against any epidemic situation.

The State Council, or the cabinet, has launched a first-grade emergency response to the earthquake. Emergency teams of ministries, armed forces and armed police are heading to the quake zone.

RESCUE UNDERWAY

The hardest-hit areas are in the townships of Longmen and Qingren, said Jin Zelin, an official with the provincial armed police corps.

"Old houses in Gucheng village with a population of 3,000 completely collapsed. More than 95 percent of the houses in the village are not suitable for living in," he said.

Luo Hongsheng, 20, was burning paper money and sobbed in a shelter near the debris, grieving her grandfather who died in the quake.

Her grandpa was feeding chickens when the house collapsed and buried him. He was dug out of the debris by his family members by hand, she told Xinhua.

Vehicles damaged by rolling rocks were seen in Lushan. Houses along a street in the Lushan county seat have also collapsed. Helicopters are hovering, according to Xinhua reporters at the scene.

Patients are receiving medical treatment on the ground in front of the Lushan County Hospital.

More than 500 people are injured, 135 seriously, said Le Zhiyong, deputy head of the hospital.

The water and electricity supply in the county has been cut off due to the quake.

Landslides have blocked traffic in many places across the county and two barrier lakes caused by the landslides are posing risks for the rescue efforts.

Bifeng Gorge, a panda research base affiliated to the Wolong Giant Panda Protection and Research Center, is only 47 km from the epicenter. But there have no reports of human or panda casualties, said Yu Xiaoying, a staff member with the Wolong center.

Multiple temporary settlements with food and water supplies have been established in the county seat, a Xinhua reporter said from the scene.

About 3,870 armed police have arrived in Lushan county to assist with rescue efforts.

More than 10,000 soldiers, including 8,000 field forces and 5,000 militia, have arrived at the disaster-hit areas by foot, trucks and helicopters, Zhou Xiaozhou, chief of staff of the Chengdu Military Area Command (MAC) of the People's Liberation Army, told Xinhua.