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Mandy Zuo

Yunnan province observed a three-minute silence yesterday morning to remember those lost in the devastating earthquake in Ludian county.
Work stopped and people bowed their heads in public places across the province as air-raid sirens and car and truck horns sounded at 10am.
The magnitude-6.5 earthquake killed 617 people and injured more than 3,000 others, according to the authorities. More than 110 people are still missing.
Power and water supplies have been restored in most quake-affected areas, but people are still facing threats including landslides, barrier lakes formed by blocked rivers and the potential spread of disease.
According to Chinese tradition, the seventh day after death should be marked with mourning. Some residents in the disaster area observed Saturday as the seventh day, and more than 1,000 people gathered in Culture Square in Ludian that night, holding up candles to commemorate the victims.

In Longtoushan town, the epicentre of the earthquake, people also observed traditional rites such as burning paper money.
Villagers told the South China Morning Post they had enough water and food, but transportation remained difficult.
Yu Caijing, a 28-year-old man from Luomakou village, said he and about 50 other villagers were using their motorcycles to give free rides across town to those in need.
"My own family's matters have almost been settled. Although I don't know how to rescue those buried, I can at least do something to help the living," he said.
Yu lost his three-year-old daughter in the quake.
The Highway Monitoring and Response Centre at the Ministry of Transport said the earthquake had damaged over 140km of roads and led to the collapse of more than 7,000 roads.
Meteorologists forecast torrential rain in the quake-affected area today and tomorrow and on the upper reaches of the Niulan River, where landslides have formed a barrier lake near Hongshiyan village.
The rain is expected to raise the water level of the lake and might trigger landslides and floods, the provincial meteorological station said.

All residents living in dangerous areas downstream of the lake had been evacuated from their homes by Saturday, Xinhua reported.
Workers have used dynamite in a bid to create channels to drain the water from the lake.
Xiao Taiqiao, a 38-year-old woman in Babao village, has an elder brother who is missing and her younger one was seriously injured after he was hit by falling rocks during the earthquake.
They were among a dozen villagers who were on a hill fixing the village's tap water pipe when the earthquake struck.
"They gave up searching [for my elder brother] yesterday, and my little brother is still in a coma in hospital," she said.
"There are very kind volunteers sending us food and water every day. We now have meat and vegetables."
She said she was concerned about the threat of disease and illness after the disaster.
There have been reports of cases of diarrhoea, she said.
Zhao Shiwen, the deputy director of Yunnan's disease control centre, was quoted by China National Radio as saying that cases of fever and diarrhoea had been identified and the authorities were closely monitoring the situation. "The possibility of an epidemic has been excluded," he said. Health conditions in the area were steady and in good order, he added.
Every village in Longtoushan has five or six people in charge of disease control, responsible for collecting information on illnesses and tracking the health of patients, he said.
Experts have also warned against the outbreak of tuberculosis, given that Ludian is listed as one area in the province where it frequently occurs.


Silence observed for victims of Yunnan earthquake

People bow their heads in Wenping town, Ludian county, during a
three-minute silence held throughout Yunnan province at
10am yesterday – seven days after a magnitude-6.5 earthquake
struck the impoverished region. Photo: Xinhua

Rescuers sift through the debris of a collapsed building in Longtoushan as a helicopter passes overhead. Photo: Xinhua

Rescuers stand among damaged buildings in Wangjiapo to pay their respects to quake victims seven days after the disaster. Photo: Xinhua

Rescuers to work non-stop to lower dangerous barrier lake in Yunnan quake zone

Rescuers clear the debris by an earthquake-formed barrier lake of the Niulan River in southwest Yunnan. Photo: Xinhua

A woman cries as she stands in the rubble of her home in Longtoushan town - the epicentre of the earthquake. Photo: Reuters

A map shows the lake (shaded in grey) running through the area. The west barrier (outlined in orange) is the only thing preventing the waters from flooding villages and power stations. Photo: Taihainet.com

'Have we been forgotten?' Yunnan villagers say help hasn't come four days after quake

Volunteers prepare breakfast at a temporary shelter in Longtoushan township for the area's many earthquake victims. Photo: Xinhua

Longtoushan residents burn offerings to the dead. Photo: Simon Song

Villagers wash clothes beside rising river water after an earthquake in Longtoushan town, Ludian county. Photo: EPA

Villagers climb on a collapsed hill on the way to back home in Longtoushan. There are reports people are treading such treacherous paths to get supplies for their home village as rescuers fail to arrive. Photo: EPA

A helicopter flies over a temporary resettlement in quake-hit Longtoushan. Photo: Xinhua

A rescue worker searching for earthquake victims in Longtoushan. China has warned non-professional volunteers against entering the disaster zone. Photo: AFP

Rescue efforts continue as 'golden period' ends in Yunnan quake zone

Villagers unload relief supplies from a helicopter at Longjing village, Longtoushan. Photo: Xinhua

A panoramic view of the earthquake zone in Longtoushan township, on Aug 06. Photo by Simon Song


News

China

Three minutes silence observed as province comes to standstill to mourn those killed


Yunnan province observed a three-minute silence yesterday morning to remember those lost in the devastating earthquake in Ludian county.
