Society

Aid pours into mudslide-flattened China county

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-08-09 14:33

BEIJING - China's Red Cross Society on Monday said it would allocate another 1 million yuan to Zhouqu county, in Northwest China's Gansu province where hundreds of people were buried in mudslides early Sunday.

The money would be used to purchase emergency supplies such as food and drinking water, the organization said in a statement given to Xinhua.

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It has also allocated relief supplies worth 400,000 yuan to the region.

So far, the Red Cross Society and its branches nationwide had allocated 3.5 million yuan in funds and goods to Zhouqu.

Rain-triggered mudslides swept through Zhouqu early Sunday, leaving at least 127 people dead and close to 1,300 missing as of 9 pm Sunday. Rescuers are still hunting for survivors.

About 45,000 people have been evacuated, according to a statement from the provincial civil affairs department.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs has sent 5,000 sleeping bags, which reached Zhouqu county by Monday noon. More relief supplies are being delivered to the county, some 650 km from the provincial capital, Lanzhou.

By 10:50 am Monday, the ministry had sent four batches of relief supplies, including 5,200 tents, 20,000 cotton coats, and 8,000 folding beds to Zhouqu.