An earthquake devastated southwestern China, killing close to 10,000 people and trapping hundreds of others under schools, factories and houses while the worst-hit area was still cut off from rescuers on Tuesday. The 7.9 magnitude quake, centred in Sichuan province, struck in the middle of the school day on Monday and toppled at least eight schools. Chemical-laden factories and at least one hospital collapsed, trapping hundreds more, state media said. The death toll appeared likely to climb in China's worst earthquake for over three decades as troops struggled on foot to reach the worst-hit area of Wenchuan, some 100 km from the Sichuan's provincial capital Chengdu. Officials said there was no word from three townships nearest epicentre in Wenchuan, a hilly county of 112,000 people. About 900 teenagers were buried under a three-story school building in the Sichuan city of Dujiangyan. Premier Wen Jiabao, who rushed there, bowed three times in grief before some of the 50 bodies already pulled out, Xinhua news agency reported. Xinhua said at another Dujiangyan school 420 students were trapped and workers had so far been able to rescue less than 100. Another four children died and more than 100 were injured when two primary schools crumbled in the sprawling metropolis of Chongqing. “Not one minute can be wasted,” Wen said. “One minute, one second could mean a child's life.” In Chengdu, many residents slept outside or in cars, fearing more tremours in the city where at least 45 people died and 600 were injured. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao called it a “major disaster” and urged calm. “Facing disaster, the most important thing is calm, confidence, courage and strong leadership,” Wen told China's CCTV television on a flight to the heart of the quake-hit zone. “We will definitely overcome this major disaster.” President Hu Jintao urged an “all-out” effort to rescue victims. Military troops were ordered to help with the disaster relief work. The international airport at Chengdu was closed and air traffic was disrupted elsewhere. Meanwhile, US President George W. Bush on Monday offered his condolences to China over a devastating earthquake that killed thousands of people and said the United States “stands ready to help.” Japan told China it was ready to provide as much relief as possible to victims of earthquake, the foreign ministry said. All trains to and from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, were ordered to stop, the Chengdu Business Newspaper reported. Xinhua said the city's airport was also shut down while engineers assessed the runways. Air China announced that all its flights to Chengdu had been diverted to other airports, Xinhua reported, and there were delays reported on. The communication network went down in Sichuan and other areas, including Beijing's mobile phone system - about 1,500 km from the epicenter - where tremors were felt. Local communications were also damaged by the earthquake, which cut off fixed line phone services in four counties in Sichuan, and five counties in neighboring Gansu province, according to Xinhua. Key websites on the Internet, including the one belonging to China's Earthquake Department, were inaccessible. Xinhua also reported that earthquake damaged two chemical plants. The factories are located in Shifeng, about 50 km in Sichuan province, citing an official from the State Administration of Work Safety.
