Updates on Chengdu earthquake

I received this from one of my church members. It is a few days old, since the letter was dated Saturday, May 17th.

Dear Friends and Family:

Today is Saturday in China, the fifth day following the massive quake in the mountains roughly 100 miles north of Chengdu, China. Life here in Chengdu, where we are staying, is a much different than it was when we arrived. Thousands are still camped out in makeshift tents, mostly out of fear that the aftershocks will cause their crack-riddled homes to collapse. Hundreds are camped out on open grassy areas at Sichuan University; many others have simply pitched their makeshift tents on the sidewalks throughout this city of 8 million people. Some people have actually dragged their beds into some of the larger makeshift tents. My sense is that this fear is a bit irrational; however, the fear that this people have is quite easy to relate to.

We continue to feel strong aftershocks. Last night we felt a 5.9 aftershock lasting about 30 seconds. As we are staying in a newly built high-rise building, we feel fairly safe. However, students of Sichuan University told me that they do not want to return to their old brick-built dormitories because the cracks in the walls and ceilings seems to pose a threat. Having seen these dilapidated three-story dorms, I can't blame them.

Other things in Chengdu have changed as well. A significant minority of the little ma & pa shops is closed. The restaurants that are still open have few customers. I suspect that many people have gone to the affected regions to volunteer in the relief efforts….. or simply to care for relatives. The news reports said that 1,200 Chengdu taxi drivers have gone to one major city, Du Jiang Yan, to help with transportation of people and supplies. Another 5,600 taxi drivers have volunteered and are on standby. Even the food supply here is being impacted. There is a shortage of fresh food, and the food that is available is much more expensive than it was last week.

News coverage of the Quake is ubiquitous…. Every channel is providing round-the-clock coverage. Shopkeepers and the locals are watching incessantly. Huge outdoor screens in the shopping districts broadcast news of the relief efforts as well.

Today, we visited an outdoor shopping mall where we saw a group of ten students, each of whom were wearing white t-shirts bearing the words, "save the earthquake victims." They were all chanting words of encouragement to the volunteers who were helping in the affected regions. As we approached, we realized they were asking for contributions for the quake victims. People did not hesitate to give donations.. As we walked more, we discovered there were donation tables set up everywhere with enthusiastic volunteers soliciting donations.

This earthquake has unified the spirit of the Chinese people to a degree that has not been seen for some time. The response of the Chinese people to this epic catastrophic has really moved me. The needs of the victims are matched by the people's "need" to help out. Being so close to the calamity, the people of Chengdu cannot just sit back and watch. In my observation, there is an innate need take some kind of action. Indeed, once we realized that we were safe, we began to discuss ways in which we could help. Two days ago, we decided to rent an 18 ft long truck with cases of food and water to deliver to the earthquake victims. We visited the townships of Shi Fang City (Luo Shui and Yin Hua), a two-hour drive from Chengdu (it would have taken one hour had the roads been paved).

Along the way, we saw hundreds of "civilians" driving into the affected region. Some caravanned in large groups; others came in single cars and trucks. All vehicles had banners to indicate what company or organization they were representing. As I understand it, the municipal government sent many workers to the regions. My sense of it, however, was that most people were going as true volunteers.

When we arrived in Luo Shui Township, we were "assigned" a volunteer to show us around. I think we were given better access than others because of the amount of food we were donating. We were told we had to wear masks over our faces because of the stench of the bodies. We needed the masks. This was utterly different from watching quake coverage on TV. It was almost too real. As we walked beside the crumbled buildings, I sort of withdrew into myself, not wanting to talk at all.

It is hard to appreciate the magnitude of the damage unless you drive through it. We weren't witnessing one major catastrophe, but thousands of individual ones. Our senses, and emotions, were utterly overwhelmed. In addition to the casualties suffered by the locals and their property, the earth suffered damage as well. Landslides were everywhere, making roads impassible. Many tree-covered mountains had experienced huge landslides. We saw one smaller mountain that looked like half dome after one side had crumbled.

We got as far as the township of Yin Hua before the roads became impassible. Yin Hua, a mountainous town of 14,000 people, was probably 5 miles from the epicenter. We spoke to the person in charge of the relief efforts about the casualties. He was very reluctant to give out any information out of fear that we were American reporters. We did learn that about 70% of the buildings were damaged. In the outer-lying regions, where the farmers live, there were no buildings or homes that were spared. There are currently 92 villages that have not been reached at all due to the road conditions.

The locals in the effected region have no running water or electricity. While they do have food and water that is being brought in with huge tanker trucks, the people desperately need medicine, blankets, tents and toilet paper. The huge homeless population will be in serious danger when the weather gets warmer. Now it is only in the mid 70s.

We visited Yin Hua before there was new coverage of this area, probably because there are too many regions to cover, and the western media does not have access. My sense is that the Chinese are very concerned about granting western media unfettered access to the area. We shall see as time goes on.

This calamity has many, many dimensions, which I am sure will unfold over time. The one thing that appears clear at this point is that the Chinese government and Chinese people are doing everything in their power to help the victims of this unprecedented earthquake. Events such as these bring out the best in people.