The search for dozens of people still missing was jeopardized on Thursday, days after a powerful earthquake hit southwest China’s hilly region and killed at least 82 people.
According to the US Geological Survey, the magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck on Monday at a depth of 10 kilometers around 43 kilometers southeast of the city of Kangding in Sichuan Province, displacing thousands of people into makeshift camps.
According to the state-run CCTV, 36 fatalities were reported in Ya’an city, which is nearby, while 46 fatalities were reported in Ganzi Prefecture, which is close to the epicenter.
Without elaborating on the circumstances surrounding those who are still missing, CCTV claimed that 35 people were still missing and more than 270 others had been injured.
Up until Thursday night, the national weather service had issued a yellow notice indicating a “risk of geological disaster,” and moderate rain was expected to last through Friday with heavy rains in some regions.
Since this post-earthquake geological conditions are already precarious, the area surrounding “needs to beware of secondary disasters as the impact of extra rainfall may lead to landslides and mudslides,” the report warns. Chinese meteorological service said.
More than 10,000 workers from the People’s Liberation Army, paramilitary police, and fire rescue agencies were sent to the area to conduct search operations and landslide cleanup work in the isolated countryside.
According to the report, local governments have already received over 100 million yuan ($14 million) in donations for disaster assistance, and the Sichuan government has issued an emergency notice requiring local governments to provide hardship allowances for impacted citizens.
The nearby megacity of Chongqing and the provincial capital of Chengdu, where millions of people are confined to their homes under a stringent Covid-19 lockdown, were also shaken by the tremor.
