More aid dropped to China quake victims
By John Ruwitch
HANWANG, China (Reuters) - Transport planes dropped more aid for dazed survivors of China's massive earthquake on Thursday but hopes began to fade for some 25,000 buried under rubble despite heart-warming rescue successes.
The Communist Party leadership told officials to "ensure social stability" as Monday's 7.9 magnitude quake in southwestern Sichuan province spawned rumours of chemical spills, fears of dam bursts and scenes of collective desperation.
The official death toll estimate from the quake stands at 14,866, but that is expected to rise given the tens of thousands still buried.
About 130,000 army and paramilitary troops assisted the search and rescue effort, sifting through towns turned to rubble. One 22-year-old woman was trapped, unhurt but unable to move, in the city of Dujiangyan, waving at the cameras and waiting for tonnes of a ruined hospital above her to be lifted.
"I'm still alive and I'm very happy," she said. "I'm happy you have come to save me -- don't worry, I'll protect myself."
Rescuers in the city wrapped corpses dragged from the rubble in tarpaulins and sped them to morgues. They were so busy that a notice outside one collapsed school asked parents to search for missing children in shifts.
But three days after the quake, hopes of pulling survivors from the ruins dimmed and the waves of rescuers appear to be hampered by lack of specialised equipment.
