Picking up the Pieces from China's Quake
"You don’t really feel the intensity unless you really experience one. It’s sort of like your life, in a split second, you are chosen to live or to be dead, in a split second. That goes right through your mind. It’s like that." - Lin Xu
It's hard to believe that just two days ago, one natural disaster dramatically altered the lives of tens of thousands, and shifted the focus of a nation. The Olympic fervor has taken the backseat, and rightfully so, to the more pressing needs of the victims.
When it comes to assessing the damage of a natural disaster, it can be difficult not to grow numb by the numbers. Here's a glance at some of the most sobering:
- 14,866 are reported dead
/span> - 25,788 remain buried in the rubble
/span> - 64,746 are injured
/span> - 14,051 are missing
/span> - 3.46 million homes are damaged
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The only problem with just looking at the numbers is that they tend to remove the human element from the situation.
For people, like Lin Xu, whose
He says, "I was on a tall building, it started shifting and shaking, and I thought it was going to collapse the next second. I had to find the nearest exit and run." He was in the
When the earthquake hit, it was, "like something in an amusement park, I thought, this is the end of my life. It’s exactly what I thought. It’s all over. I just ran so far. I was literally jumping off the stairs, not even running off. Jumping off the stairs. I managed to get out, and the building didn’t collapse, but all of the ceilings started to fall and everything, and huge cracks on the wall of the buildings. If it continued to shake two more minutes the building would split. Right now no one’s even told us when we can get back into the building."
Many workers in
The government and civilians have been working around the clock to provide assistance to the needy, and over 100,000 troops have been deployed in these areas. There are so many people who want to volunteer officially, that the line just to get a form is three hours long.
Some people have taken matters into their own hands, and Lin says that a few of his friends filled up their car with food and supplies to take to some of the people in the areas closest to the earthquake's epicenter. Most of
Even the blood banks, which at first suffered a shortage, now have three-hour long lines at all of Chengdu's twelve centers, as you can see from the video. Whether providing financial resources or emotional support, people throughout
The Chinese government, in particular, has done a commendable job orchestrating the clean-up efforts, and contributed $120 million USD to the victims. Chinese citizens have also given $86 million USD, and foreign governments have also given money and expressed condolences.
At the same time, restoration isn't going to be an easy process, and new challenges will continue to arise. Getting food and support to the areas that were hardest-hit by the earthquake, finding shelter for the millions whose homes were destroyed, and providing sanitary conditions that prevent the spread of diseases are only a few pressing concerns.
"Right now it’s like everyone’s numb," Lin says, "so we’re sort of freaked out by what happened two days ago, and sort of we want to get back to our old life, but for those who got hit really hard, it’s gonna take a long time. As a city, we’re going to continue to help those in the surrounding areas financially and in any way that we’re able. If we’re not able, we still have a strong country to back us up, and also a united and friendly world to back us up."
Despite the remaining challenges, it's comforting to know that the world is standing behind