Disaster relief under way in China's quake zone

Relief measures are under way in southwest China's Yunnan Province three days after a 6.6-magnitude quake hit the region on Tuesday.

On Friday, the first shipment of prefab houses was sent to the No. 1 Central Primary School of Yongping Township in Jinggu County, Pu'er City. Dozens of volunteers, soldiers and workers were busy moving and assembling the materials.

After the earthquake, which killed one person and injured more than 300, the county's 100 schools were suspended. Four buildings of No. 1 Central Primary School of Yongping were hit hard by the quake.

"In an area of more than 1,400 square meters, we will build 24 prefabs that are fire-proof and insulated so students can resume class as soon as possible," said Shen Guangxin, president of Yunnan Youth Development Foundation.

The makeshift houses can accommodate 1,457 students from the first to fourth grades, and the school plans to resume classes next Monday after construction is completed, said school head Shi Zhaowei.

As of around 5:15 p.m. on Friday, safety was ensured for one of the dams in the quake zone. After 40 hours of effort, a trench was completed to discharge water from the at-risk Changhai Reservoir, whose dam had suffered a 107-meter-long, 15-cm-wide crack.

According to the provincial civil affairs department, a total of 11,360 tents, 12,800 quilts, 4,500 bottles of water and other supplies have already been sent to the affected area.

Fourteen injured in Jinggu County are still in hospitals or other medical institutions, while others were discharged after inpatient care, said the county's health authorities.

The epicenter of Tuesday's earthquake was about 67 kilometers from Lincang City and 85 kilometers from Pu'er City. A strong tremor was also felt in the provincial capital Kunming.