BBC News about Wenchuan Earthquake
A powerful earthquake in China is feared to have killed thousands of people in the southwestern province of Sichuan. The official news agency Xinhua says nearly ten thousand people may have died, with many more buried and injured. In one county, most of the buildings are reported to have collapsed(倒塌). Michael Bristow sent this report from western China.
“This is the biggest earthquake to hit China in more than 30 years. Thousands are already confirmed (证实) dead. Chinese state media are reporting that 900 middle school children were buried when their school collapsed. At least 50 are known to have died. 80% of the buildings in one county alone have collapsed, and up to 5 000 people there are feared dead. The earthquake struck just before 2：30 this afternoon. The epicenter (震中) was in the mountainous Wenchuan county in Sichuan province.”
And today marks the 11th anniversary of the terrible earthquake that struck Wenchuan County in southwest China's Sichuan province. The earthquake was the strongest to hit China since 1950.At least 87,000 people were killed or declared missing in the disaster. The earthquake left more people homeless than any other tremor(微震) in recorded history. At least 4,800,000 people required shelter after their homes were destroyed. However, the impact(影响) of the Sichuan quake was not only felt through the death toll(伤亡人数)—it also resulted in significant economic loss. But Wenchuan has begun huge reconstruction since 2008. It is estimated (估算)about 885 billion RMB, or 137 billion US dollars have been spent on rebuilding the affected area.
