Up to 5 000 killed, says China

2008-05-12 15:02

Beijing - An estimated 3 000 to 5 000 people were killed in one county of China's Sichuan province alone after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit the region, Xinhua news agency said, citing the local government.

As many as 10 000 in Sichuan's Beichuan county were feared injured, the report said.

An AFP report said earlier that nearly 900 students were feared buried after the powerful earthquake caused a high school building to collapse.

The quake struck close to densely populated areas of southwestern China, flattening schools and homes and killing more than 100 people, according to early estimates.

The quake was felt in cities across a swathe of southeast Asia including the Thai capital Bangkok, more than 1 800 kilometres from the epicentre in Sichuan province.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao called it a "major disaster" and urged calm.

"Facing disaster the most important thing is calm, confidence, courage and strong leadership," Wen told China's CCTV television on a flight to the heart of the quake-hit zone.

"We will definitely overcome this major disaster."

President Hu Jintao urged an "all-out" effort to rescue victims. Military troops were ordered to help with the disaster relief work.

The international airport at Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, was closed and air travel disrupted elsewhere.

An Olympic spokesperson said none of the 31 venues for the Beijing Olympics in the capital and six other host cities had been damaged.

"They are earthquake proof to a high degree and no damage was done," said Sun Weide, deputy director of the Olympic media and communications office.

The quake struck 93km from Chengdu, a city of more than 12 million people, and some 260km from Chongqing and its 30 million.

- Reuters