China Earthquake Relief Efforts and Donations

China earthquake relief efforts are underway as a 7.0 earthquake shook Sichuan province on Saturday, April 20, 2013, almost five years after the massive 2008 earthquake that struck along the same fault line leaving over 90,000 people dead or missing, including many children crushed by collapsing schools.

Saturday's earthquake although of lesser magnitude was severe with casualties already reaching 184 dead and over 11,000 injured.

The epicenter was about 80 miles southwest of Chengdu, Sichuan's capital, near the city of Yaan, where the well-known Panda Breeding Centers are located. The Panda Centers have not reported any major damages but some remain closed until further notice.

Donations and how you can help

Here are a couple of links to organizations that are helping with the earthquake relief efforts. Donations can be made through them:

• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
  
  
• SavetheChildren.org
  
  
• Mercycorps.org

Our prayers are with the victims and their families.

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Sichuan Earthquake Travel Updates

We will be posting updates related to travel to the affected areas. For now, it is safe to assume that areas will remain closed for non-essential travel. Forecasts of rain are likely to make things even more complicated and hazardous in the coming days.

Judy Chen from www.chinadiscovery.com in Chengdu has provided us with the following update: "Chengdu is safe to travel now, we also hope that Yaan will become stable; however, Bifengxia (in the area of Yaan) remains closed until futher notice."

Bifengxia is the area where one of the major Panda conservation facilities is located and where most of the pandas were relocated after the 2008 earthquake that destroyed the Wolong Reserve.

As of Wednesday April 24, 2013:

• Chengdu Airport is open and flights have resumed normal operations
• The Chengdu Panda Breeding Center is open
• Most Chengdu hotels, restaurants, businesses are open
• The Ya'An Conservation Center at the Bi Feng Xia Panda Reserve remain closed until further notice

Sichuan Earthquake Latest News

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