Geneva, 17 January 2000
Two earthquakes measuring 5.9 and 6.5
on the Richter Scale hit Dayao County and Yao An County in southwest
China's Yunnan Province on 14 January 2000. The tremors were felt
in Panzhihua in neighbouring Sichuan Province and in Yuxi, Dali and Kumning
in Yunnan. Preliminary reports reveal that 4 people were killed and
more than 300 injured. Over 4,800 buildings have collapsed with around
50,000 severely damaged.
Drinking water, food, medicine, cotton quilts and tents/shelters are urgently needed. Emergency assistance is already under way with soldiers and medical units on the scene.
Yunnan Province is prone to earthquakes with 11 quakes measuring more than 6 on the Richter Scale in the last 50 years. Seismologists predict that additional earthquakes measuring 5.0 to 6.0 are very likely to occur in the next few days.
HKCC has allocated HK$100,000 from their Emergency Fund as an initial response to the Yao An Yunnan earthquake while the Amity Foundation is closely following the situation and contacting local government for details of damages and needs. Pending further information, an appeal may be forthcoming.
Thank you for your attention.
ACT is a worldwide network of churches and related agencies meeting human need through coordinated emergency response.
The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland.
ACT Web Site address: http://www.act-intl.org