30,000 missing or out of reach in one single Chinese city after earthquake

30,000 missing or out of reach in one single Chinese city after earthquake

More than 30,000 people were missing or out of reach in the quake-hit Shifang City, as the death toll climbed above 2,500, according to the local government.

About 238 students were buried, and 147 were missing, according to the latest update posted at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday on the government website (www.shifang.gov.cn).

More than 10,000 people have been injured, and the total loss was estimated to be 40 billion yuan, it said.

An official surnamed Zou in the city government publicity department told Xinhua that some of the missing people were miners in small towns.

Shifang came under focus when the earthquake destroyed two chemical plant in the Yinghua town and caused the leakage of 80 tonnes of ammonia, forcing more than 6,000 people to evacuate.

Zou said the leak has been capped, and no one had died because of it.

About 1,000 troops have been parachuted into the area for the rescue, and about 10,000 people are staying in government shelters.

The city has a population of about 430,000 people.

2008-05-14