Memorial service held for Xizang quake victims; resettlement efforts being stepped up

A memorial ceremony was held at 9:30 am on Monday morning to honor the earthquake victims in Chamco Township, the area most severely affected by the 6.8-magnitude earthquake in Dingri county, Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region. 

Hundreds of participants, including soldiers from the PLA and armed police, firefighters, public security officers, medical personnel, young volunteers, employees from relevant enterprises, officials, and representatives from the affected community, stood in silence with their hats off for three minutes to mourn their deceased compatriots, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Monday marks the seventh day since the 6.8-magnitude earthquake hit Dingri. The earthquake struck in the morning of January 7. With a high magnitude and intensity, it resulted in the unfortunate loss of 126 lives and the damage of 27,248 households, including the collapse of 3,612 homes. The earthquake affected five counties, covering 26 townships and 206 villages (communities), with approximately 61,500 people affected to varying degrees.

Currently, a total of 407 people have been rescued, and over 47,500 disaster-affected individuals have been properly relocated. The earthquake relief efforts are being carried out effectively and in an orderly manner. At present, Xizang is making every effort to coordinate temporary and transitional housing arrangements to ensure that the affected population stays warm during the winter.

The Global Times has learned from the Xigaze relief headquarters that as of 6 pm on Sunday, a total of 2,198 prefabricated houses had been built across the quake-stricken areas with the arrival of more than 166,000 pieces of blankets, 40,737 heating stoves, 118,000 sets of clothing, 569 tons of fuel, and 32,363 lighting equipment. 

According to the headquarters, other necessity supplies have also been made available  to people in need, including roughly 50,530 kilograms of staple foods (tsampa, rice, noodles, and oil), 140 tons of meat, 487 tons of vegetables and fruits, 225,000 kilograms of food, 85,247 boxes of beverages, 15.2 tons of forage for cattle, and 41,275 other household items.

The prefabricated houses started being built on Sunday in Tonglai village, Chamco, with more than 60 completed so far, village official An Zhengfa told the Global Times on Monday. An said they plan to set up 110 units by Monday night so that all the villagers, a total of 491 people in 92 families, can move into the houses from tents on Tuesday.

Besides resident housing, An said Tonglai village had received supplies of instant food, warm clothing, and heating stoves as of Wednesday and had a canteen set up on Friday where villagers can have lunch and supper.

"It's such a relief for us that people have hot meals to eat and warm places to sleep. What we'll do next is to clear the rubble and transfer villagers' property, mainly grain and forage, from their ruined homes," said An.

As of 5 pm on Sunday, there were 650 prefabricated houses set up in Qulho Town, Dingri county, with 763 houses under construction, CCTV reported. According to the head of Qulho, affected residents who have moved into the prefabricated houses have electricity and water. Wi-Fi and public toilets will be soon equipped in settlement .

An emergency psychology research team from the Institute of Psychology under Chinese Academy of Sciences arrived in Xigaze on Thursday. The team visited the resettlement sites in Chamco and Qulho, bringing soccer balls, badminton shuttlecocks and rackets, jump ropes, and hula hoops for the children there as part of an effort in post-disaster psychological assistance.