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Quake death toll rises again

Article published on the 2008-05-23 Latest update 2008-05-23 10:07 TU

Workers look into temporary housing being built in Dujiangyan, Sichuan Province(Photo: Reuters)

Workers look into temporary housing being built in Dujiangyan, Sichuan Province
(Photo: Reuters)

The death toll in China's earthquake rose to 55,740, a government spokesman announced on Friday. Officials also warned that the number of dead is likely to rise further in the coming days, as a further 24,960 people are still missing. Beijing has appealed for more than three million tents and ordered the construction of temporary homes.

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The body count has risen by 4,500 since yesterday and more than 5.47 million people are still homeless in south-western Sichuan province. The Chinese government warned on Friday that it would take three years to rebuild the earthquake zone.

China has made a international appeal for 3.3 million tents and ordered the construction within three months of one million temporary houses. Sichuan Vice-Governor Li Chengyun said that many survivors were in danger of contracting diseases in areas affected by the disaster.

"Now is the peak season for disease outbreaks and the situation is extremely grim," he told a news conference in Beijing.

He said that people badly needed tents and medical supplies, especially antibiotics.  

Officials said that the government's top priority was rescuing anyone still trapped under the rubble eleven days after the quake.

Aid donations from China and abroad continue to rise, with the total now reaching 3.5 billion dollars, according to government sources. The Chinese government has also announced a national lottery for relief and rescue work. A five per cent national budget cut has also been announced for this year, in order to divert funds towards helping those affected by the disaster.

Humans are not the only ones to be affected by the quake, which measured 8.0 on the Richter scale. Six rare pandas were evacuated from the Wolong breeding centre in south-west China on Friday. Three pandas are still missing.

Meanwhile, Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Beijing on Friday and is due to visit President Hu Jintao later in the day. It is Medvedev’s first foreign visit since taking power.