Rescue accelerates as major aftershock hits Sichuan quake zone(2)

SCARED BUT STAY CALM

Local residents have stayed calm despite another earthquake late Tuesday night. The quake struck at a depth of 16 kilometers, more shallow than the one on Saturday, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Following the quake, local residents rushed out of their homes, with some claiming that they felt the jolt was much stronger jolt than the one that hit three days ago.

"It felt much stronger than the previous one and the dinner ware in my kitchen all fell off the case and broke," a woman in her fifties surnamed Wang told Xinhua while jammed into the scared crowd in downtown Kangding.

Wang said she stayed outside overnight for fears of more aftershocks.

A man surnamed Lee and his family were more prepared for the aftershock. The family of three ran out of their building with two big bags -- one for their "important property" and the other carrying emergency survival supplies including bread, bottled water and a hot-water bag.

"We packed the two bags after the quake on Saturday and left them by the bed in case any emergency happened," said Li.

Water and power supply remained normal in Kangding.

The walls of Kangding airport were cracked with ceilings damaged, but the airport is functioning normally.

Nearly 7,000 students in four major schools in the County were evacuated. There was no report of casualties or injuries among the students.

Telecommunications were affected and many could not be reached by phone. Local residents instead used instant messaging service WeChat to contact each other.

After Saturday's earthquake, the prefectural and county governments allocated 9 million yuan for emergency relief and evacuated a total of 9,184 residents.

A total of 999 medical staff were sent to the quake-affected areas and relief goods including tents, quilts, clothes and shoes were dispatched to the affected people.