China News Service, Ganzi, September 6th: News from the epicenter of the Luding earthquake in Sichuan: the liveliness and silence of Moxi Town
Reporter Wang Peng
In the blue disaster relief tent on the square, residents are having lunch.
Among the green mountains in the distance, a large area of yellow collapse marks can be seen.
In the leaden sky, rescue helicopters roared.
At about 13:00 on September 6, after more than 6 hours of driving, a reporter from Chinanews.com finally arrived at the epicenter of the 6.8-magnitude earthquake in Luding, Sichuan - Moxi Town.
At 12:52 on September 5, an earthquake of magnitude 6.8 occurred in Moxi Town, Luding County, Ganzi Prefecture, Sichuan Province.
As of 14:00 on the 6th, the earthquake had killed 66 people (including 38 people in Ganzi Prefecture and 28 people in Ya'an City), 15 people lost contact, and 253 people were injured.
A shop in Moxi Town was a mess.
Photo by Wang Peng
The famous Hailuogou Scenic Area is located in Moxi Town. In normal days, tourists here are bustling with people. It is a lively tourist town with restaurants and hotels.
The doors of most shops are now closed, and a mess can be seen through the glass doors.
At noon on the 6th, Gao Xuelin, a 69-year-old old man from Moxi Town, finished eating a bowl of instant noodles, and was still horrified when he talked about his experience yesterday.
The night just passed, there were 19 adults and children living in the tent where he was staying, and he "would fall asleep very late."
Rescue helicopters transported the wounded, and traces of the mountain collapse were clearly visible.
Photo by Zhang Lang
When the earthquake happened, Gao Xuelin was mowing hogweed in the Hailuogou valley a few kilometers away when he heard a "dong dong" collapse and was thrown to the ground, "I panicked at that time, I couldn't stand at all, my brain was numb. Got knocked out!"
He said that after the earthquake, the surrounding mountains collapsed on a large scale, the river swelled, and the roads were interrupted. He and a dozen villagers chopped wood to build bridges and walked for 6 hours before returning to the town. "It was getting dark when we approached the town. Thanks to the rescuers, we were escorted out of the dam."
At this moment, more than 24 hours after the earthquake, rescuers are still busy.
More than 800 people were trapped in Gonghe Village, Moxi Town, where the mountain collapsed and the road was broken.
Chen Weiqi, director of the Publicity Department of the Sichuan Forest Fire Brigade, said that Gonghe Village was the last village for rescuers to arrive after the earthquake. Vehicles could not pass, foreign aid could not reach, and there were casualties. Move to a safe area."
Home emergency assessors assess the condition of the home.
Photo by Zhang Lang
No matter what, life has to go on.
A yak meat soup pot restaurant next to the resettlement site has been assessed to be able to operate normally. Cai Faxiu, a 45-year-old Tibetan owner, decided to provide free meals to volunteers and the elderly. "As much as you can."
When the earthquake happened, Cai Faxiu was in the store, "I was thrown around so far, I couldn't stand up, I thought I couldn't survive. During the earthquake, I couldn't run out at all. After the earthquake, I went out and sat on the ground... "In the words, the hearty female boss's eyes were red.
"It will be fine!" was written on the door of a smashed vehicle.
Photo by Wang Peng
After leaving the resettlement site, the reporter entered the quiet streets of Moxi Town. Broken bricks and tiles can be seen everywhere in the alleys, but not many houses collapsed. ""Prohibited" and other different levels of labels.
"The town is mainly composed of brick and concrete structures, and there are not many collapses. Occasionally, wooden houses in disrepair collapse, and brick and stone walls collapse relatively more." Du Long, a housing emergency assessor, told reporters.
In this bustling town, the liveliness of the past is in stark contrast to the silence at this time. This is the power of nature.
However, clues on the streets reveal the optimism of the locals.
On the street in Moxi Town, a black car was crushed in half by the collapsed wall. Someone wrote three words on the door - "It will be fine!" (End)