China Earthquake: Death toll from Gansu earthquake rises to 131. Harsh cold hinders rescue efforts, with victims relocated to temporary settlements. Severe injuries overwhelm local healthcare, while supplies remain scarce. Cold-weather challenges complicate rescue work, with many homes uninhabitable. Survivors endure freezing conditions, and authorities detain individuals spreading false aftershock information. Rescue work shifts to treatment and resettlement efforts.
China Earthquake: In Bitter Cold, a Struggle to Help Survivors The death toll from the earthquake in a poor, remote area rose to 131. People who lost their homes huddled in tents or spent the night in cars. Rescue workers faced challenges plowing through frozen sludge and navigating icy, damaged mountain roads. Victims with serious injuries were rushed to hospitals in cities, overwhelming the villages’ limited capacities. Emergency workers raced to find survivors and distribute aid in Jishishan County in China’s northwest. The quake, which hit late Monday night, killed at least 131 people. More than 87,000 people had been temporarily resettled, with photos showing rows of blue tents and residents wrapped in thick coats. Temperatures remained cold, with lows of around -16 degrees Celsius. The quake injured at least 980 people and damaged more than 200,000 buildings. Jishishan County, home to ethnic minorities, did not have enough clothes, quilts, or shoes to distribute to residents and would need to rely on outside aid. Some residents still had only the few layers they’d managed to grab in the dark when the quake struck. Relief efforts were concentrated on some villages, while others were still waiting for aid. In Qinghai Province, rescuers were grappling with landslides triggered by the earthquake. Officials said rescue work had largely finished, and their efforts would turn primarily to treatment of the injured and resettlement. China’s last earthquake with a higher death count was in 2014 in southwestern Yunnan Province, where 617 people died. The government honed its rescue and relief efforts after a 7.9-magnitude earthquake in Sichuan Province killed around 90,000 people in 2008.
China Earthquake: In Bitter Cold, a Struggle to Help Survivors The death toll from the earthquake in a poor, remote area rose to 131. People who lost their homes huddled in tents or spent the night in cars. Rescue workers faced challenges plowing through frozen sludge and navigating icy, damaged mountain roads. Victims with serious injuries were rushed to hospitals in cities, overwhelming the villages’ limited capacities. Emergency workers raced to find survivors and distribute aid in Jishishan County in China’s northwest. The quake, which hit late Monday night, killed at least 131 people. More than 87,000 people had been temporarily resettled, with photos showing rows of blue tents and residents wrapped in thick coats. Temperatures remained cold, with lows of around -16 degrees Celsius. The quake injured at least 980 people and damaged more than 200,000 buildings. Jishishan County, home to ethnic minorities, did not have enough clothes, quilts, or shoes to distribute to residents and would need to rely on outside aid. Some residents still had only the few layers they’d managed to grab in the dark when the quake struck. Relief efforts were concentrated on some villages, while others were still waiting for aid. In Qinghai Province, rescuers were grappling with landslides triggered by the earthquake. Officials said rescue work had largely finished, and their efforts would turn primarily to treatment of the injured and resettlement. China’s last earthquake with a higher death count was in 2014 in southwestern Yunnan Province, where 617 people died. The government honed its rescue and relief efforts after a 7.9-magnitude earthquake in Sichuan Province killed around 90,000 people in 2008.