In China, Number of Earthquake Deaths Is Expected to Top 50,000

In China, Number of Earthquake Deaths Is Expected to Top 50,000
Soldiers and civilian volunteers continue rescue efforts in Sichuan Province. But survivors have criticized the government's delays in sending aid. Transcript of radio broadcast:
16 May 2008

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

Thousands of soldiers and civilian volunteers continue rescue and relief efforts after Monday’s huge earthquake in southwestern China. Thousands of people are believed to still be buried under collapsed buildings.


Officials say the number of dead is expected to rise to more than fifty thousand. On Friday, Chinese President Hu Jintao arrived in Sichuan Province to support earthquake relief efforts. Hundreds of thousands of people are without homes. Health officials warn that a lack of food, clean water and medical supplies could lead to the spread of disease. Officials also warn that dams and other structures weakened by the earthquake could still collapse.
So far, China has received international aid worth more than two hundred million dollars. But officials say the country still needs tools, equipment, temporary shelters and medicine. The Chinese government made a rare public appeal Thursday for tools used for digging and moving wreckage. Some rescuers have been digging through building wreckage with only their hands.

Airplanes carrying aid and volunteers from Taiwan landed in China on Thursday. The first foreign rescue team arrived Friday in Sichuan Province from Japan. China has also agreed to accept teams from Russia, Singapore and South Korea.

Chinese state television has shown Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in areas where the earthquake hit, talking to survivors and directing relief work.

The Chinese government has sent about one hundred thirty thousand military and aid workers to Sichuan Province. It has also deployed more than one hundred helicopters to transport victims and drop emergency supplies to survivors. The state-run Xinhua news agency reports the government has also ordered temporary controls on food prices and transportation costs in affected areas.

However, many survivors are criticizing the government’s delays in sending help to affected areas. Others have questioned the safety of public schools and hospital buildings. Many schools collapsed, killing classrooms full of children. Thousands of parents lost their only child in the quake because China’s population control policies limit most families to having one child.

Also this week, aid organizations said the number of victims of a severe storm in Burma could reach more than one hundred thousand. The storm struck Burma’s Irrawaddy Delta on May third. The United Nations says as many as two million survivors need food, water, shelter and medicine.

Pressure continues on Burma's military government to permit international aid organizations to help the survivors. A U.N. spokesman in the country says some aid is reaching affected areas but it is not enough.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. Our reports can be found on our Web site at voaspecialenglish.com. I’m Steve Ember.

----------------------------Google Translate

在中国，人数地震死亡人数是预计顶端50000
士兵和文职人员志愿人员继续救援工作在四川。但幸存者有批评政府的延误，派遣援助。全文电台广播：
2008年5月16日

这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语。

数以千计的军人和文职人员的志愿者继续救援和救济的努力后，周一的大地震，在中国西南地区。成千上万的人被认为仍埋在倒塌的建筑物下。


官员说，死亡人数预计还将攀升至超过5.0万。上周五，中国国家主席胡锦涛抵达在四川省支持抗震救灾工作。成千上万的人都没有家园。卫生官员警告说，缺乏食物，洁净水和医疗用品可能导致疾病的蔓延。官员也警告说，水坝和其他结构，削弱了地震仍可崩溃。
直至目前为止，中国已经得到了国际社会的援助，价值超过2.0亿美元。但官员说，该国仍需要工具，设备，临时避寒中心，和医药。中国政府作出了罕见的公开呼吁星期四为使用的工具为挖掘和移动残骸。一些救援人员已挖通过建设的残骸，只有他们手中。

飞机进行援助和志愿人员来自台湾，降落在中国对周四。第一位外国救援队抵达周五在四川省从日本。中国也同意接受队从俄罗斯，新加坡和南韩。

中国国家电视台表明，中国总理温家宝在的地方，地震，谈幸存者和指挥救灾工作。

中国政府已派出约13.0万军队和援助工作者，四川省。它也部署了超过100直升机运输的受害者和下拉紧急救援物资的幸存者。国家民营新华通讯社的报告，政府也下令暂时管制，对粮食价格和运输成本在受影响的地区。

不过，许多幸存者是批评政府的延误，发送，协助受影响的地区。其他已经提出质疑的安全，公立学校和医院建筑物。许多学校倒塌，造成教室，充满了儿童。数以千计的父母失去唯一的孩子在地震中，因为中国的人口控制政策限制，大多数家庭有一个孩子。

此外，这个星期，援助组织说，受害者的人数严重的风暴在缅甸能达到以上十万。风暴缅甸的伊洛瓦底三角洲于五月第三。联合国说，有多达两百万幸存者需要食物，水，住房和医药。

的压力，继续对缅甸军政府允许国际援助组织，以帮助幸存者。联合国发言人在该国说，一些援助是深远的影响的地区，但它是不足够的。

这是在新闻中在美国之音特别英语，写的brianna布雷克。我们的报告可以发现，在我们的网站在voaspecialenglish.com 。我史蒂夫ember 。