China earthquake: 200,000 flee from growing Sichuan lake
Aerial view of the town of Yuli, in Sichuan province, partially submerged by the swollen Tangjiashan lake, created by the earthquake. Photograph: Guo Wei/Xinhua/Reuters
China's contingency plan to evacuate up to 1.3m flood-threatened survivors of the Sichuan earthquake got under way today with the movement of almost 200,000 people.
The relocation to higher ground was started as fears grew that a huge lake may flood down from the mountains where water has built up behind an unstable landslide.
It is the first stage of a plan to move up to 1.3 million people who live downstream of the Tangjiashan "quake lake", the largest of the 34 bodies of water formed by the seismic disruption on 13 May.
Chinese engineers have been trying to dig and blast a channel that would allow the lake to drain safely, but their efforts have been hampered by rainfall and the inaccessibility of the location.
Despite flying 30 giant earthmovers to the site by army helicopter, the water has continued to build up behind the newly formed dam. At one point below the barricade, it is 23 metres (72ft) deep.
Officials said it was unlikely to burst today but the risks will increase in the days ahead as heavy rain and big aftershocks are forecast.
According to the Mianyang government information office, the authorities have started implementing a two-stage evacuation plan. The first stage - which has been under way for several days - will see the moving of 197,500 people living in areas likely to be inundated if a third of the dam collapses.
The town of Beichuan - one of the worst affected areas downstream of the lake - is now out of bounds for everyone but soldiers.
Under the second stage, 1.3m people will be moved to higher ground in case more than half the dam gives way. The Xinhua news agency reported today that this had been put into practice, but officials in Mianyang denied this.
"We haven't started the full evacuation, but we will conduct a rehearsal at headquarters from tomorrow until 2 June," said an information officer who declined to give his name. Separate reports suggested the drill will focus on communications and the public will not participate.
The authorities are trying to complete the drainage operation before the barrier collapses. Hundreds of troops have managed to dig a third of the channel.
"The work on the blocked lake is going smoothly and, at this pace, it should be completed soon," Zhou Hua, an official involved in the effort, told Reuters news agency.
"At this stage, the situation is under control, but we've set in place this contingency plan to minimise any possible damage."
The death toll from the 7.9 magnitude quake continues to climb. There are 68,858 confirmed deaths and another 18,618 people are missing, many of them presumed buried under the rubble.
The emergency services have won public respect for the relief operation, but there is fury at officials and construction firms responsible for building shoddy schools that collapsed in the quake, killing at least 9,000 pupils and teachers.
Grieving parents have asked why neighbouring structures remained upright and accused officials of corruption and skimping on materials.
The government has promised an investigation and punishment for anyone found to have been negligent.
An official investigator told the Guardian that one of the reasons for the collapse of Juyuan middle school was that builders used cheap polyporous slabs.
"It would have been better if they used a different material. Of course, it was to do with the price," said Chen Baosheng, an expert from Tongji University in Shanghai.
"If the Juyuan middle school collapsed, it shouldn't be to the extent that it kills people. There needs to be a uniform standard. It is not good if there is no uniform standard."
Some of the parents of the dead children have contacted lawyers to press their case in the courts.
"They have volunteered to represent us for free," said Gan Tinfo, whose child died at Juyuan middle school. "I want the responsible officials to be punished by the law and fired from their posts."
Better news is that social workers and volunteers have helped to reunite 7,000 children with their parents. In the chaotic first few days after the quake, 8,000 children were separated. Many of them were presumed orphaned, prompting a surge of adoption offers.
Now only a thousand children are alone and the civil affairs department said it would continue to look for their mothers and fathers before considering fostering.
Millions of people are still sleeping in tents and temporary accommodation.
Among the most famous of the damaged structures is the world's biggest panda reserve at Wolong, where the buildings have been so badly damaged that the institution may have to be moved.
"It's better to move, I think," said Zhang Hemin, the head of the reserve, told the China Daily.
China News
China earthquake: 200,000 flee from growing Sichuan lake
Aerial view of the town of Yuli, in Sichuan province, partially submerged by the swollen Tangjiashan lake, created by the earthquake. Photograph: Guo Wei/Xinhua/Reuters
China's contingency plan to evacuate up to 1.3m flood-threatened survivors of the Sichuan earthquake got under way today with the movement of almost 200,000 people.
The relocation to higher ground was started as fears grew that a huge lake may flood down from the mountains where water has built up behind an unstable landslide.
It is the first stage of a plan to move up to 1.3 million people who live downstream of the Tangjiashan "quake lake", the largest of the 34 bodies of water formed by the seismic disruption on 13 May.
Chinese engineers have been trying to dig and blast a channel that would allow the lake to drain safely, but their efforts have been hampered by rainfall and the inaccessibility of the location.
Despite flying 30 giant earthmovers to the site by army helicopter, the water has continued to build up behind the newly formed dam. At one point below the barricade, it is 23 metres (72ft) deep.
Officials said it was unlikely to burst today but the risks will increase in the days ahead as heavy rain and big aftershocks are forecast.
According to the Mianyang government information office, the authorities have started implementing a two-stage evacuation plan. The first stage - which has been under way for several days - will see the moving of 197,500 people living in areas likely to be inundated if a third of the dam collapses.
The town of Beichuan - one of the worst affected areas downstream of the lake - is now out of bounds for everyone but soldiers.
Under the second stage, 1.3m people will be moved to higher ground in case more than half the dam gives way. The Xinhua news agency reported today that this had been put into practice, but officials in Mianyang denied this.
"We haven't started the full evacuation, but we will conduct a rehearsal at headquarters from tomorrow until 2 June," said an information officer who declined to give his name. Separate reports suggested the drill will focus on communications and the public will not participate.
The authorities are trying to complete the drainage operation before the barrier collapses. Hundreds of troops have managed to dig a third of the channel.
"The work on the blocked lake is going smoothly and, at this pace, it should be completed soon," Zhou Hua, an official involved in the effort, told Reuters news agency.
"At this stage, the situation is under control, but we've set in place this contingency plan to minimise any possible damage."
The death toll from the 7.9 magnitude quake continues to climb. There are 68,858 confirmed deaths and another 18,618 people are missing, many of them presumed buried under the rubble.
The emergency services have won public respect for the relief operation, but there is fury at officials and construction firms responsible for building shoddy schools that collapsed in the quake, killing at least 9,000 pupils and teachers.
Grieving parents have asked why neighbouring structures remained upright and accused officials of corruption and skimping on materials.
The government has promised an investigation and punishment for anyone found to have been negligent.
An official investigator told the Guardian that one of the reasons for the collapse of Juyuan middle school was that builders used cheap polyporous slabs.
"It would have been better if they used a different material. Of course, it was to do with the price," said Chen Baosheng, an expert from Tongji University in Shanghai.
"If the Juyuan middle school collapsed, it shouldn't be to the extent that it kills people. There needs to be a uniform standard. It is not good if there is no uniform standard."
Some of the parents of the dead children have contacted lawyers to press their case in the courts.
"They have volunteered to represent us for free," said Gan Tinfo, whose child died at Juyuan middle school. "I want the responsible officials to be punished by the law and fired from their posts."
Better news is that social workers and volunteers have helped to reunite 7,000 children with their parents. In the chaotic first few days after the quake, 8,000 children were separated. Many of them were presumed orphaned, prompting a surge of adoption offers.
Now only a thousand children are alone and the civil affairs department said it would continue to look for their mothers and fathers before considering fostering.
Millions of people are still sleeping in tents and temporary accommodation.
Among the most famous of the damaged structures is the world's biggest panda reserve at Wolong, where the buildings have been so badly damaged that the institution may have to be moved.
"It's better to move, I think," said Zhang Hemin, the head of the reserve, told the China Daily.
