震救灾正在进行时

Disaster relief operations are underway after a 6.5-magnitute earthquake hit Ludian county in south-western China's Yunnan Province. The death toll from the quake has reached 410 and more than 2-thousand were injured as of this afternoon. For more on the situation there, the Beijing Hour's Cao Yuwei joins me in the studio. Thanks Lulu. We now know that there will be more rains in the coming days. How is that going to affect the rescue effort? Yes the quake-triggered landslides and continuous downpours have blocked roads to the worst-hit areas, making it difficult to transport injured residents and relief materials. Army helicopters have been deployed to evacuate those severely injured. There are still injured residents trapped in the epicenter due to unrelenting rainstorms. Li Jinwu is chief of an aviation brigade under Chengdu Military Area Command. "The weather is not good and the terrain is complicated both for taking off and landing. We have evacuated 24 seriously injured people today and dozens with minor injuries." Meanwhile a barrier lake has been formed due to overnight heavy rains on Monday and the volume and level of the water has been dramatically rising at a speeds of nearly 1 meter per hour. Jiang Delin is with the Local Hydrological and Water Resources Department. "Rocks and earth from landslides on both shores of the Niulan River formed a barrier lake. The barrier body is 210 meters in length, 60-70 meters in width in the direction of water flow, and 116 meters in height. According to our measurement, 67 meters of the barrier is under the water." Vice Director of the National Geometrics Center of China Luo Jianjun says the lake is hampering rescue efforts. "The whole picture shows that the barrier lake is a serious problem. Landslides have also blocked roads serving as lifelines. These are all major factors that are affecting our rescue efforts." It is estimated that the lake will overflow within two days if the water keeps rising. Local authorities are relocating around 800 people from 5 downstream villages to safer areas. Armed traffic police are trying to break through the blocked road leading to the river in order to allow more large-sized excavators to the barrier lake, to help discharge the water. So to prevent secondary disasters like mudslides is very crucial for the rescue effort. Then as the death toll climbs to over 400, what do we know about the seraching effort so far? Yes around 11-thousand police and 7-thousand soldiers have rushed to the quake-hit area. They are racing against time to find survivors. Tian Guoyong is from the provincial fire corps. "The first 72 hours after the quake is a crucial period to search for survivors. We have dispatched 37 teams, each of them being 10 to 15 people with rescue dogs and necessary equipment. They will search any survivors by each household." The optimum rescue period will end on Wednesday. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has pledged to arrange efficient rescue and relief for victims. "So far, we will try our best to rescue the injured, and settle the victims. We must take on our responsibility. Professional relief teams are rushing towards the quake center. With their advanced equipment, there is still hope for miracles. We can save more lives under the ruins." The premiere also says he's confident that with the help from the government, local people are able to triumph over the disaster.