Ｍｉｒａｃｌｅｓ　Ｂｏｒｎ　ｏｆ　Ｌｏｖｅ

Ｏｕｒ　Ｓｔａｆｆ　Ｒｅｐｏｒｔｅｒ

TTime stopped at 14:28 on May 12, 2008. Wenchuan of Sichuan Province, an unknown small county hidden in the mountains became the centre of attention in China and the world as well. An 8.0-magnitude earthquake struck Wenchuan, ripping open the ground, causing landslides that blocked highways and rivers, collapsing buildings, and sending tremors across the country. This tranquil county town was reduced to ruins in a couple of minutes. The earthquake affected a total area of 410,000 square kilometres including provinces of Sichuan, Gansu, Shaanxi and Yunnan, and Chongqing Municipality, of which an area of 100,000 square kilometres suffered devastating damages. By June 4, the earthquake has claimed 69,122 lives, injured 373,606 people and 17,991 were still missing. The estimated direct economic loss reached 600 billion yuan (86 billion US dollars).

In face of this unexpected natural calamity, Chinese leaders responded promptly.

At 15:55 on May 12, Chinese President Hu Jintao who is also General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee issued an order to make all-out efforts to rescue the injured as soon as possible and ensure the safety of people in the disaster areas.

At 16:40, Premier Wen Jiabao boarded a plane bound for the quake-hit areas. The premier stressed that saving lives should be taken as the top priority during quake relief and that making every effort to save those buried in the rubble by all means and at any cost.

At night, the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee convened an emergency meeting. General Secretary Hu Jintao presided over the meeting and the all-round relief work was arranged.

At 21:42, Premier Wen Jiabao was directing relief work in Dujiangyan, one of the worst-hit areas.

In this race against time to rescue those stranded in the rubble, the governments concepts of “putting people first” and “exercising state power for the people” have manifested to the full in the relief work. No one found under the rubbles was abandoned. “As long as there is a slim hope, we will try our best to save everyone buried in the rubble,” said President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao time and again. It was this conviction that life is higher than heaven gave hope to those trapped in the rubble; it was this firm determination that soothed the survivors. A kiss on a childs cheek from Hu Jintao, the consoling words from Wen Jiabo at the scene of rescue, cadres at various levels plunging themselves into the most dangerous front of disaster relief, all of which induced unprecedented great strength from the people that quickly turned into action.

In face of this unexpected natural calamity, the army, the armed police, the militia and reserve forces and medical personnel under the unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council rushed to the rescue in the quake-hit areas.

After the earthquake occurred on May 12, an Armed Police Detachment in Beichuan County that had just escaped from the ruins immediately went into the work of rescuing and evacuating local people, becoming the first rescue team in the quake-hit areas.

At 23:15 on May 13, after a forced march of 90 kilometres on the rugged mountain path blocked in many parts by massive landslides, a 200-strong armed police vanguard entered the seat of the Wenchuan County Government, the communications with which had been cut off for over 30 hours.

On May 14, risking their own lives, 15 paratroopers parachuted to Maoxian County from an altitude of 5,000 metres under extremely bad weather conditions.

On May 14, a medical team from Chongqing Municipality arrived at Yingxiu Town by boat, becoming the first medical team in the epicentre.

At 21:30 on May 15, under the direction of the Ministry of Transport and the Sichuan Provincial Government, more than 4,000 road repair workers who had worked around the clock for over 70 hours reopened the national highway G317 from Maerkang via Lixian to Wenchuan. It is the first highway, the lifeline, to the epicentre repaired after the massive earthquake.

At 17:30 on May 17, the second lifeline—national highway G213, the southern route from Dujiangyan City to Yingxiu—was reopened. Thus, rescue workers and materials could enter the worst-hit Wenchuan and Beichuan through the two lifelines in an endless stream.

As of June 4, a total of 160,000 rescue personnel have been dispatched to the affected areas.

In so many days and nights after the earthquake, rescuers in green, white and orange uniforms searched laboriously for survivors in the rubble. As long as there was any sign of life, they would not give up their efforts no matter how difficult the rescue might be. The selfless dedication of rescuers touched the hearts of so many grieving survivors who had lost their loved ones. Thanks to their perseverance more and more people escaped death. It is their spirit of daring hardship and fatigue that made miracles of life appear one after another.

After tense and difficult rescuing, He Chenxi, 26 years old, was retrieved from the rubble after being trapped for 104 hours, Li Mingcui, 61, dug out after 164 hours, Wang Youqiong, 61, relieved after 196 hours, Cui Changyou, 35, saved after 216 hours…

To persist in the rescue effort means saving more lives from the rubble. The total number of survivors helped out of the rubble reached 6,541.

In face of this unexpected natural calamity, the hearts of the people of the whole country were linked closely together. Everyone donated money or materials showing concern, care and love for the compatriots in the disaster areas.

On May 18, at Dedication of Love, a fund-raising event jointly sponsored by the publicity and cultural circles, representatives of the performing artists, sportsmen, calligraphers, opera singers and writers went up the stage to make donations to the disaster areas and many from the business circles also joined in. A total sum of 1.514 billion yuan was raised at the event.

On May 30, In the Name of Life, a special concert to pay tribute to the relief workers of the earthquake, was held in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province. More than 60 well-known singers and performers took part in the show, hoping to help relieve the pain of those traumatized survivors with their performance.

By June 4, China had received donations worth 38.972 billion yuan in cash or materials for earthquake relief from all social strata in the mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and the Chinese communities across the world.

Sharing weal and woe, the people of the whole country are united as one. Everyone contributes his/her bit to the relief efforts. The Chinese all over the world—old and young, able-bodied and disabled, from the mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, or residing in other countries—all extended a helping hand. They donated money, relief material as well as their blood. At this moment of disaster, all did their utmost, rich or poor making no difference. All this testifies that blood is thicker than water.

On May 19, a week after the devastating earthquake hit Wenchuan, flags flew at half mast and public entertainment was suspended all over China as the country began a three-day mourning period for the victims who had lost their lives in the quake. This is the first national mourning ever held for victims of natural disasters since the Peoples Republic was founded in 1949. At 14:28, the people of China stood for three minutes in silent tribute to the tens of thousands died in the Wenchuan earthquake while sirens, car, train and ship horns wailed in grief. It was the most grand and solemn mourning ceremony, at which the people of the whole country expressed their deepest sorrow for their dead compatriots. May the dead rest in peace and the survivors stand firm!

After the earthquake occurred, emergence aids and assistance flowed into China from various countries, regions and world organizations in a steady stream. The Chinese Government for the first time welcomed all forms of assistance and aids from the international community.

After the earthquake struck, rescue teams from Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Russia as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan regions rushed to the worst-hit areas to help save more lives. Medical teams from Japan, Russia, Italy, Cuba, the U.K., Germany, Pakistan and Indonesia successively arrived in the devastated areas to provide the most needed medical services. As of June 4, these medical teams had given treatment to over 6,400 people injured in the earthquake and performed 386 operations.

Up to June 4, 166 countries and 16 international organizations had provided aids and assistance to China, of which 3.555 billion yuan in cash and 1.154 billion yuan worth of various relief materials.

In time of ultimate crisis or challenges from nature, compassion makes all the differences people may have such as race, social system, ideology, etc. irrelevant; kindness and sympathy prevail. The strength of a pair of hands is limited, but all hands joining together will produce indestructible strength. Confronted with natural calamities, people of different skin colours, races, social systems and ideologies should stand together, for we live on the same earth, breathe the same air and share the same sunshine.

The trauma caused by earthquake may not be healed in a short time, nor the reconstruction of the quake-destroyed villages, towns and cities. And the survivors will never see their loved ones died in the quake. But we believe there will be a rainbow after the storm and a future filled with joy and happiness, because in the rescue and relief efforts of this devastating disaster, we have seen the great love in the world, a love that moves all the living souls and gives the greatest solace to the victims. This love has convinced us that miracles can be created by those who are courageous, persevering and united.