| RELIEF teams working in China after the earthquake have been joined by thousands of Chinese volunteers. They are reported to have flocked to the stricken areas in their thousands, in what The Times described as “a phenomenon unseen before in the country: a volunteer army”.
The volunteers are quoted as saying: “If disaster strikes in one place, then people will come from eight places to help.” The Amity Foundation, a partner of Christian Aid and other agencies, reported on Monday: “The situation changes day by day. We have just heard from the front line that many medical squads and groups have swarmed into Chengdu from home and abroad.
“The rescue office says that with the medical force on the ground, basic medical needs are met. For the time being, local government is implementing restrictions on the registration of medical groups. Those who have expressed willingness to come and help might have to shelve their plans until further notice.”
Volunteers from Britain’s International Rescue Corps were among those turned back. The experienced team of ten had been deployed at the request of the British Consulate, but reported that owing to the overwhelming scale of the disaster, the Chinese authorities had not been able to grant them visas. The team, which had specialist equipment on hand in Hong Kong, felt frustrated by the refusal, but did manage to donate food and medical supplies.
Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), who have been working with the Chinese Red Cross and other health authorities to assess the needs and help the injured, reported that staff in state-run hospitals in Hanwang, Mianzhu city, were totally exhausted. Their buildings had suffered severe structural damage, and they were now working in tents in the hospital grounds.
Amity said that its staff had decided to focus their relief work on certain rural areas of Sichuan. “The searching and emergency rescue work by the military and professional rescuers is drawing toward an end,” the charity reported, endorsing the experts’ view that few victims, if any, are likely still to be alive under the rubble. Deaths are likely to exceed 50,000. Five million homes have been lost.
China held a three-minute silence on Monday at 2.28 p.m., a week after the earthquake struck. It was the start of three days of national mourning for the dead.
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