'Thousands dead' in Chinese quake

Rescue workers have been trying to reach students of Juyuan Middle School

A powerful earthquake has killed between 3,000 and 5,000 people in one county alone in Sichuan province, south-western China, reports say.

Thousands are feared killed and injured across other areas after the quake, which had a magnitude of 7.8, struck at 1428 local time (0628GMT).

Desperate efforts are under way to find survivors. One school that collapsed has buried an estimated 900 students.

President Hu Jintao has urged "all-out" efforts to rescue victims.

The epicentre of the earthquake was about 92km (57 miles) from Chengdu, Sichuan's provincial capital.

Because the earthquake struck in the middle of the day, it is feared that many schoolchildren may be among the victims.

Cries for help

There are harrowing reports from the scene of the school collapse in Dujiangyan city - about 100km (60 miles) from the epicentre.


Teenagers buried beneath the rubble of the three-storey Juyuan Middle School building were struggling to break free, while others were crying out for help, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Parents were watching as cranes excavated the site. Villagers rushed to help with the rescue.

Two girls said they escaped because they had "run faster than others".

One of the worst-hit areas appeared to be Beichuan county, part of the Mianyang city municipal area.

Some 80% of buildings there were reported to have been destroyed, leaving between 3,000 and 5,000 people dead and up to 10,000 injured.

Fast response

Dozens of aftershocks have been reported since the quake, which was the strongest to hit Sichuan province in more than 30 years, Xinhua reports.

Eyewitness Gilles Barbier: 'It was very scary'

The province is the most populated part of China - home to 87 million people.

State television said the quake had not caused major damage to Chengdu, which has a population of more than 10 million people, or to the nearby Three Gorges Dam.

However, there were reports of factories, dormitories and other buildings collapsing near the epicentre.

Troops and helicopters have been sent to help with relief work.

The BBC's Quentin Somerville says the Chinese army has a good record of mobilising and getting people to safety.

He also says it is one of the most open and speedy responses to an emergency he has ever seen from Chinese state media.

The quake was felt as far away as Beijing, he says, meaning millions of people will feel connected to the disaster and will be watching TV screens closely to see how the government responds.

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