Thousands dead after quake in China

The worst hit areas appear to be rural parts of Sichuan province and this county is one of them. China’s state run media said the quake caused 80% of the buildings there to collapse and killed between 3 and 5,000 people and injured another 10,000. the population of the province’s capitol is about 10 million. When the quake struck at 2:30 pm local time, buildings shook for several minutes. This man lives in the capitol and says the quake was truly terrifying. The man says he feels lucky that he and his mom were uninjured and that their phone, electricity and internet connection still work. Other parts of Sichuan province included reports of a toxic chemical leak and the collapse of numerous buildings including several schools. China’s Prime Minister traveled to the area and en route called for an all out rescue level by Chinese authorities at all levels. President Bush expressed his condolences for the victims of the quake and said the US is ready to help in any way possible.