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China: World Vision distributes aid after quake
19 Apr 2010
By World VIsion staff
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Members of World Vision's assessment team in China sit in front of boxes of aid.
Photo by World Vision staff.
©2010 World Vision International |
A team of World Vision aid workers has arrived in China's quake-stricken Qinghai Province after 30 hours' travel by road.
The team, invited by the government to participate in assessments of the damage, has distributed 1,000 boxes of noodles, hygiene kits and child-friendly kits in Jiegu town, where more than 80% of the buildings have been damaged or destroyed.
Officials now say 1,944 people have died after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake rocked Qinghai Province, a remote, mountainous area of western China, on Wednesday. Tens of thousands have been left homeless.
Shelter
According to Meimei Leung, who is leading World Vision's assessment team into the affected area, adequate shelter and warm clothing for children and families is a key concern, as average temperatures in the area have been hovering between -3 to 14 degrees Celsius.
Hygiene, medical and other health needs may be a critical area of need that World Vision can help fill, Leung said, based on early conversations with the Qinghai arm of the China Charity Federation, the government group that coordinates with aid agencies.
China's Ministry of Civil Affairs says it is planning to send 5,000 tents, 50,000 quilts and 50,000 winter jackets to the affected areas.
Children
Assessing conditions for the quake's youngest survivors will be World Vision's top priority: "Based on what we learn on the ground, we will be moving quickly to meet the needs of children, particularly to help them establish a normal routine again and stay clear of dangerous rubble," said Leung.
World Vision will also be looking into reports of schools that have collapsed in the area. The aid group has been building schools in the area worst affected by the 2008 Sichuan quake, carefully adhering to national building standards so that children are safe when they go to school.
“There has been a series of aftershocks and this can be very frightening for children,” said Victor Kan, World Vision’s humanitarian emergency director.
“It is important that they seek safety in earthquake-proof buildings or open areas, away from hazardous buildings."
Casualties
Hard-hit Yushu County is considered to be one of the poorest areas in China, inhabited mostly by herders who belong to the Zang minority group.
While the county has a sparse population of just 70,000 people, the fact that the epicentre was close to the county seat, combined with the early morning time of the quake, resulted in a higher number of casualties, Leung explained.
"The quake struck at 7:49 am local time when most people were asleep, and many were trapped inside damaged buildings," she said.
World Vision first began working in China in 1982, and has reached a total of 2.1 million people affected by the 2008 Sichuan quake, including helping communities rebuild homes, schools and livelihoods.
The aid group also educates thousands of children and families in China about disaster safety, including earthquake safety, using cartoon books that teach children where to go, what to do and who to contact in order to save lives ahead of a disaster.
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