Beijing - China has agreed to Japan sending an emergency
rescue team to help with efforts to save tens of thousands of people
buried under rubble after a devastating earthquake, the foreign
ministry said on Thursday.
'The Chinese government has agreed to the Japanese government
sending professional rescue personnel to help with rescue efforts in
the Sichuan earthquake disaster area,' ministry spokesman Qin Gang
said in a statement.
The Japanese team is believed to be the first foreign team that
China has allowed into the area since a 7.8-magnitude earthquake
destroyed thousands of buildings in Sichuan and other areas of
south-western China on Monday.
Several towns close to the epicentre were nearly razed, a military
relief officer said Wednesday, as the confirmed death toll rose to
about 15,000.
At least 26,000 people were believed to be buried in collapsed
buildings, while the official Xinhua news agency said more than
30,000 people were missing or out of contact in Sichuan's Shifang
city alone.
Military helicopters began flying aid, medical personnel and
relief troops to isolated settlements near the epicentre on Tuesday.
But the extent of the damage and casualties in the worst-hit
county of Wenchuan, which has a population of 105,000, remained
unclear.
A paramilitary officer who was one of the first outsiders to reach
some of the worst affected areas on Tuesday said that several towns
were almost razed to the ground.
Heavy rain had initially prevented helicopters from flying
emergency aid to Wenchuan while troops were still trying to restore
two badly damaged main roads to the county town.
The earthquake was felt in cities hundreds of kilometres away,
including Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Bangkok.
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