More help on way for Muyu survivors

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Source: CCTV.com | 05-21-2008 14:45

More on the impact of the earthquake elsewhere in Sichuan. Muyu is the worst hit of the various townships in Qingchuan county. As CCTV reporter Liu Ying reports, survivors there are struggling to deal with the ongoing aftermath.

This is the only passage linking Muyu to the world outside. Having been severely damaged by landslides and mudflows, the narrow mountain pass is still vulnerable to the slightest of aftershocks.

A building housing a three-story dormitory suddenly collapsed, killing 286 of the students inside.

A junior middle school in the area was badly hit last week. A building housing a three-story dormitory suddenly collapsed, killing 286 of the students inside.

Meanwhile, temporary relocation sites such as these have been set up to shelter the town's remaining survivors.

CCTV reporter Liu Ying said, "There were three residential buildings behind me previously. But now we can see all three buildings have collapsed. And people who survived are still living in very shabby shelters they themselves set up on the ground in front of the buildings."

56-year-old Zhu Shurong lived on the first floor of a five-story building in which less than a quarter of the people who once lived there survived the huge tremor that shook Sichuan.

But Zhu Shurong and his family live to tell the tale.

Five family members now huddle together inside this very small camp. Together, they've managed to salvage some of their belongings from out of the rubble.

This is one example. A washing machine, which was the latest purchase from their old home a reminder of a past life.

Thanks to the arrival of relief supplies over the past couple of days, the Zhus now have small amounts of rice with which to cook the most basic of porridges. Much needed vegetables also arrived a day earlier. But with tap water supplies still not restores, they are managing by drinking straight from this well.

Zhu Shurong believes that, as more relief materials arrive, life will gradually improve.

Qiake survivor Zhu Shurong said, "There are so many people affected by the disaster. It's impossible for the government to provide relief for all of them within such a short period of time. We have to rely on ourselves and to wait patiently. Once more tents arrive, we can begin to move in. For now, we still need to hold on here."

The town's remote location in mountainous areas makes it extremely difficult for emergency workers to deliver relief materials. Already, the first batch of tents have arrived. But a local official in charge of relief work says they need more.

Huang Guangming, head of relief, Qingchuan County, said, "Resolving living problems is now our top priority. Currently we extremely lacking in the number of tents. There are about 20 thousand people in this allocation site alone. We need nearly 3,000 tents just to shelter them."

And helping hands are reaching out from thousands of miles away. A group of rescue workers and medical doctors from a religious and charity foundation in Taiwan are here in Muyu. they arrived just three days after the earthquake. So far, the doctors have treated hundreds of victims.

Ven. Chuehong From Buddha Light Int'l Association, said, "Providing humanitarian assistance is what we should do, especially to people with whom we share the same culture and ethnic group. When we first heard about the disaster, it was out of our wish to get here as soon as possible to offer our help."

The support from the government and many other organizations is bring much comfort to the people of Muyu. They may still be struggling with the aftermath but, for them, the worst may have passed. And one thing is for sure life will go on.

Editor:Zhang Ning