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Arelaxing Saturday morning in a rural area of tranquil Sichuan Province suddenly turned disastrous when an earthquake struck the south-west Chinese province where the economic， social and environmental impacts of the devastating 2008 Wenchuan earthquake still linger.
At 8：02 a.m. local time on April 20， the initial 7.0-magnitude shockwave jarred Ya’an City， a vista renowned for giant pandas， with a population of 1.53 million. Tremors were palpable as far away as Chengdu， 150 km from Ya’an proper and 170 km from Lushan County， the epicenter.
Inhabitants were scurrying from apartment buildings in pajamas when a 5.1-magnitude aftershock hit the bordering area between Lushan and Baoxing counties five minutes after the first tremor. Ten more aftershocks followed within the next two hours.
The China Earthquake Networks Center（CENC） had recorded 4，551 aftershocks by 8 a.m. on April 25. Authorities reported 196 dead， 21 missing and 11，470 injured on April 24. The quake directly affected over 2.31 million people in Sichuan.
News of the earthquake spread quickly online. The first report emerged 53 seconds after the first tremor， when the Chengdu Institute of Care-life microblogged， “Earthquake strikes Sichuan again.” Many netizens reblogged the report.
Hi-tech help
More than 2，000 soldiers from the Chengdu Military Area Command （MAC） rushed to the area for rescue and relief work. The Chengdu MAC also set up a rescue and relief headquarters and a medical relief team covering the quake-hit region.
One hour after the quake， two helicopters of the Chengdu MAC took off from Jiajiang County to survey the developments on the ground.
Air support has played a vital role in rescue efforts. Three hours after the quake， a cargo plane took off to ship a national rescue team to the quake-hit area while four emergency helicopter squads rushed to the worst-hit areas to locate trapped people and set up temporary helipads.
In the first 72 hours after the quake， the PLA（People’s Liberation Army） Air Force shipped about 900 people out and more than 120 tons of relief materials into the quake zone.
With roads to remote townships intermittently blocked by rockslides， the air force started the first airdrop operation on April 22， delivering food and water to thousands of survivors left homeless.
“The efficiency of rescue and relief work is closely linked to the capacity of air support，” said Cai Suwei， a senior air force officer in command of the rescue work. “We need to further improve the fast response capacity of the air force to minimize casualties in natural disasters.” The latest development of military technologies， including a satellite navigation system and unmanned aerial vehicle （UAV）， were employed in the rescue work.
Many important deployments have been made based on latest pictures of the quake-hit areas taken by satellites， drones and reconnaissance aircraft.
“From these high-resolution aerial photos， we can locate landslides and determine which roads are blocked and which parts are damaged most，” said Zhou Xiaozhou， head of the Quake Rescue and Relief Headquarters of the Chengdu MAC. “The rescue and relief teams have responded quickly mainly because the country has established an aerial intelligence network covering a large area and collecting precise information in an efficient way.”
To acquire more geographic information of the quake-hit area and the ensuing damage， the National Defense Bureau of Science， Technology and Industry initiated an emergency remote sensing mission using five satellites flying over the quake-hit area on April 20.
In lower airspace， quake-relief troops used UAVs to map small or narrow locations in the quake zone where manned reconnaissance aircraft could hardly reach.
Lang Anwu， chief of staff of an artillery regiment under the 13th Combined Corps of the PLA， said that the Beidou Navigation Satellite System， China’s homegrown satellite navigation system， has enabled land rescuers to communicate among each other and with the headquarters.
With the Beidou system， the headquarters not only can acquire every rescue unit’s realtime location and movements， but also contact them even if consumer telecommunications services are inaccessible.
Medical aid teams have also adopted new technologies to more effectively treat the injured.
A medical team from the Beijing-based PLA’s General Hospital implemented a “telemedicine” logistical system supported by satellite communications to efficiently distribute medicines precisely where they are needed.
Meanwhile， three types of disaster relief robots developed by the Shenyang Institute of Automation in northeastern Liaoning Province were dispatched on April 21 to quake-hit areas. Two of the robots are designed to enter ruins and detect life， while the third one， a flying robot， uses a high-definition camera to take aerial photos and send them instantly to relief departments. “This was the first time these three types of robots were used in an earthquake rescue and relief mission，” the institute said in a statement.
Concerted efforts
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang ordered all possible measures to be taken to rescue victims and minimize deaths and injuries in the quake zone.
On April 20， Premier Li visited Ya’an to deploy the relief work.
Tents， cotton blankets and cots were sent to the ground shortly after the quake.
The Chinese Government on April 21 earmarked 1 billion yuan （$160 million） for disaster relief funding， including rescue and relief work， the relocation of people affected by the quake， medical treatment， subsidies for the victims’families， as well as for repairing damaged public facilities.
The China Meteorological Administration has launched an emergency response， ordering prompt weather condition updates for the region. The administration has also ordered close satellite monitoring and disaster analysis of the area.
“Such a quick response was unimaginable after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake，” said Li Zengchu， leader of an emergency medical rescue team dispatched by Shanghai East Hospital.“Chinese people have become quicker， more rational， and more professional in offering quake-relief aid.”
Lei Xiaoxue， former anchorwoman of Sichuan Television who reported live on the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake， remarked how orderly relief efforts appeared.
“When information from fire brigades， hospitals， and civil affairs departments flooded in， everyone wanted to help but didn’t know what to do first in 2008. I’m glad we know how to help now，” said Lei.
Social networking sites became a platform for individual volunteers， private enterprises， charity funds and non-government rescue teams to build strength.
Many Wenchuan earthquake volunteers posted microblogs， warning that civilian teams rushing to the quake zone may be counterproductive as they could block the way for government rescue teams that are professional and experienced.
Fang Liang， a 26-year-old Chongqing resident， opened an account on microblogging service Sina Weibo to collect information on missing persons on the day of the quake， quickly drawing about 4，000 followers. The microblog had helped friends and fam-ily members locate more than 20 missing people as of April 24.
The One Foundation initiated by Chinese movie star Jet Li set up a donation account on April 20， and received more than 15 million yuan （$2.4 million） in donations from 230，000 individuals and enterprises by the end of the day. The foundation has already sent bottled wa- ter， flashlights and tents to the quake-stricken area， and it is releasing the latest rescue progress on its official microblog account.
“A transparent and influential fund like the One Foundation is trustworthy. One individual may be meager， but we can help victims a lot if we work together，” said Gu Shen， a college student in Beijing who donated 500 yuan （$81） to the fund.
“The mobilization of social forces and volunteers， the input of social resources and distribution of rescue materials have all made progress，” said Wang Shaoyu， a public security planning and risk management expert with Harbin Institute of Technology.
Nevertheless， he admitted there were still some areas for improvement. “China needs a mechanism to decide how， when， and where to allocate rescue workers and relief goods when dealing with different types and levels of disasters，” Wang said. “The government should also set forth emergency treatment skill standards for volunteers.”
Impacts
The Chinese Academy of Sciences said on April 23 that the Lushan quake was a strong aftershock of the 2008 earthquake. The researchers also concluded that the previous quake added impetus to the latter one.
On May 12， 2008， an 8.0-magnitude earthquake hit Wenchuan County in Sichuan， claiming nearly 70，000 lives. Lushan is less than 100 km from Wenchuan.
But Jiang Haikun from the CENC’s Forecasting Department had different ideas. Jiang said that the Lushan quake resembles that of the Wenchuan disaster， as both earthquakes were formed in a similar way， occurring on the Longmenshan fault zone.
“Earthquakes on this 500-km belt are infrequent， but very powerful，” said Jiang.“Twelve quakes above 5.0-magnitude have occurred since 1900， including the Wenchuan earthquake， the most powerful. But the Lushan earthquake is not an aftershock of the Wenchuan earthquake.”
Economic losses mainly occurred in Ya’an， a city with an economic weight of 1.67 percent in Sichuan and 0.07 percent of the national economy. Tourism and agricultural production are its major revenue sources.
“The quake has not affected major production areas for swine and grain in Sichuan. Supplies may be tight temporarily， but this can hardly reverse a recent downward trend for prices of pork， a staple meat in China，” said Fan Wei， an analyst at the Beijing-based Hongyuan Securities.
Infrastructure facilities were badly damaged in some local communities， but had been restored in a much quicker fashion. By April 22， major towns in the quake zone had seen power supplies and communication systems resume functions.
“The employment of professional rescue staff and orderly government management have minimized losses and made rescue work more efficient，” said Wang Xiaoguang.
At 8：02 a.m. local time on April 20， the initial 7.0-magnitude shockwave jarred Ya’an City， a vista renowned for giant pandas， with a population of 1.53 million. Tremors were palpable as far away as Chengdu， 150 km from Ya’an proper and 170 km from Lushan County， the epicenter.
Inhabitants were scurrying from apartment buildings in pajamas when a 5.1-magnitude aftershock hit the bordering area between Lushan and Baoxing counties five minutes after the first tremor. Ten more aftershocks followed within the next two hours.
The China Earthquake Networks Center（CENC） had recorded 4，551 aftershocks by 8 a.m. on April 25. Authorities reported 196 dead， 21 missing and 11，470 injured on April 24. The quake directly affected over 2.31 million people in Sichuan.
News of the earthquake spread quickly online. The first report emerged 53 seconds after the first tremor， when the Chengdu Institute of Care-life microblogged， “Earthquake strikes Sichuan again.” Many netizens reblogged the report.
Hi-tech help
More than 2，000 soldiers from the Chengdu Military Area Command （MAC） rushed to the area for rescue and relief work. The Chengdu MAC also set up a rescue and relief headquarters and a medical relief team covering the quake-hit region.
One hour after the quake， two helicopters of the Chengdu MAC took off from Jiajiang County to survey the developments on the ground.
Air support has played a vital role in rescue efforts. Three hours after the quake， a cargo plane took off to ship a national rescue team to the quake-hit area while four emergency helicopter squads rushed to the worst-hit areas to locate trapped people and set up temporary helipads.
In the first 72 hours after the quake， the PLA（People’s Liberation Army） Air Force shipped about 900 people out and more than 120 tons of relief materials into the quake zone.
With roads to remote townships intermittently blocked by rockslides， the air force started the first airdrop operation on April 22， delivering food and water to thousands of survivors left homeless.
“The efficiency of rescue and relief work is closely linked to the capacity of air support，” said Cai Suwei， a senior air force officer in command of the rescue work. “We need to further improve the fast response capacity of the air force to minimize casualties in natural disasters.” The latest development of military technologies， including a satellite navigation system and unmanned aerial vehicle （UAV）， were employed in the rescue work.
Many important deployments have been made based on latest pictures of the quake-hit areas taken by satellites， drones and reconnaissance aircraft.
“From these high-resolution aerial photos， we can locate landslides and determine which roads are blocked and which parts are damaged most，” said Zhou Xiaozhou， head of the Quake Rescue and Relief Headquarters of the Chengdu MAC. “The rescue and relief teams have responded quickly mainly because the country has established an aerial intelligence network covering a large area and collecting precise information in an efficient way.”
To acquire more geographic information of the quake-hit area and the ensuing damage， the National Defense Bureau of Science， Technology and Industry initiated an emergency remote sensing mission using five satellites flying over the quake-hit area on April 20.
In lower airspace， quake-relief troops used UAVs to map small or narrow locations in the quake zone where manned reconnaissance aircraft could hardly reach.
Lang Anwu， chief of staff of an artillery regiment under the 13th Combined Corps of the PLA， said that the Beidou Navigation Satellite System， China’s homegrown satellite navigation system， has enabled land rescuers to communicate among each other and with the headquarters.
With the Beidou system， the headquarters not only can acquire every rescue unit’s realtime location and movements， but also contact them even if consumer telecommunications services are inaccessible.
Medical aid teams have also adopted new technologies to more effectively treat the injured.
A medical team from the Beijing-based PLA’s General Hospital implemented a “telemedicine” logistical system supported by satellite communications to efficiently distribute medicines precisely where they are needed.
Meanwhile， three types of disaster relief robots developed by the Shenyang Institute of Automation in northeastern Liaoning Province were dispatched on April 21 to quake-hit areas. Two of the robots are designed to enter ruins and detect life， while the third one， a flying robot， uses a high-definition camera to take aerial photos and send them instantly to relief departments. “This was the first time these three types of robots were used in an earthquake rescue and relief mission，” the institute said in a statement.
Concerted efforts
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang ordered all possible measures to be taken to rescue victims and minimize deaths and injuries in the quake zone.
On April 20， Premier Li visited Ya’an to deploy the relief work.
Tents， cotton blankets and cots were sent to the ground shortly after the quake.
The Chinese Government on April 21 earmarked 1 billion yuan （$160 million） for disaster relief funding， including rescue and relief work， the relocation of people affected by the quake， medical treatment， subsidies for the victims’families， as well as for repairing damaged public facilities.
The China Meteorological Administration has launched an emergency response， ordering prompt weather condition updates for the region. The administration has also ordered close satellite monitoring and disaster analysis of the area.
“Such a quick response was unimaginable after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake，” said Li Zengchu， leader of an emergency medical rescue team dispatched by Shanghai East Hospital.“Chinese people have become quicker， more rational， and more professional in offering quake-relief aid.”
Lei Xiaoxue， former anchorwoman of Sichuan Television who reported live on the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake， remarked how orderly relief efforts appeared.
“When information from fire brigades， hospitals， and civil affairs departments flooded in， everyone wanted to help but didn’t know what to do first in 2008. I’m glad we know how to help now，” said Lei.
Social networking sites became a platform for individual volunteers， private enterprises， charity funds and non-government rescue teams to build strength.
Many Wenchuan earthquake volunteers posted microblogs， warning that civilian teams rushing to the quake zone may be counterproductive as they could block the way for government rescue teams that are professional and experienced.
Fang Liang， a 26-year-old Chongqing resident， opened an account on microblogging service Sina Weibo to collect information on missing persons on the day of the quake， quickly drawing about 4，000 followers. The microblog had helped friends and fam-ily members locate more than 20 missing people as of April 24.
The One Foundation initiated by Chinese movie star Jet Li set up a donation account on April 20， and received more than 15 million yuan （$2.4 million） in donations from 230，000 individuals and enterprises by the end of the day. The foundation has already sent bottled wa- ter， flashlights and tents to the quake-stricken area， and it is releasing the latest rescue progress on its official microblog account.
“A transparent and influential fund like the One Foundation is trustworthy. One individual may be meager， but we can help victims a lot if we work together，” said Gu Shen， a college student in Beijing who donated 500 yuan （$81） to the fund.
“The mobilization of social forces and volunteers， the input of social resources and distribution of rescue materials have all made progress，” said Wang Shaoyu， a public security planning and risk management expert with Harbin Institute of Technology.
Nevertheless， he admitted there were still some areas for improvement. “China needs a mechanism to decide how， when， and where to allocate rescue workers and relief goods when dealing with different types and levels of disasters，” Wang said. “The government should also set forth emergency treatment skill standards for volunteers.”
Impacts
The Chinese Academy of Sciences said on April 23 that the Lushan quake was a strong aftershock of the 2008 earthquake. The researchers also concluded that the previous quake added impetus to the latter one.
On May 12， 2008， an 8.0-magnitude earthquake hit Wenchuan County in Sichuan， claiming nearly 70，000 lives. Lushan is less than 100 km from Wenchuan.
But Jiang Haikun from the CENC’s Forecasting Department had different ideas. Jiang said that the Lushan quake resembles that of the Wenchuan disaster， as both earthquakes were formed in a similar way， occurring on the Longmenshan fault zone.
“Earthquakes on this 500-km belt are infrequent， but very powerful，” said Jiang.“Twelve quakes above 5.0-magnitude have occurred since 1900， including the Wenchuan earthquake， the most powerful. But the Lushan earthquake is not an aftershock of the Wenchuan earthquake.”
Economic losses mainly occurred in Ya’an， a city with an economic weight of 1.67 percent in Sichuan and 0.07 percent of the national economy. Tourism and agricultural production are its major revenue sources.
“The quake has not affected major production areas for swine and grain in Sichuan. Supplies may be tight temporarily， but this can hardly reverse a recent downward trend for prices of pork， a staple meat in China，” said Fan Wei， an analyst at the Beijing-based Hongyuan Securities.
Infrastructure facilities were badly damaged in some local communities， but had been restored in a much quicker fashion. By April 22， major towns in the quake zone had seen power supplies and communication systems resume functions.
“The employment of professional rescue staff and orderly government management have minimized losses and made rescue work more efficient，” said Wang Xiaoguang.