Monday, May 12, 2008

While we do not know much — we wanted to update everyone concerned about the pandas — regarding the earthquake in China. 
          
The US Geological Survey said the 7.9 magnitude earthquake hit in Sichuan Province on Monday afternoon at 2:29 pm local time. The quake struck 57 miles north-west of the city of Chengdu Monday. The epicenter of the quake was in Beichuan County China. This is considered a Major quake.

As of 11:00 Mountain time Chinese report the death toll at about 9,000. The death toll has been steadily increasing, raising concerns that the number could go far higher.

The Chengdu airport has been closed. The Chengdu Panda base is on the outskirts of the City of Chengdu. The Wolong Panda Center is in Wenchuan in Sichuan Province very close to the epicenter and about 55 miles from Chengdu. Officials are struggling to assess the full scope of the damage in Wenchuan and elsewhere because of the disruption in communications caused by the earthquake. More than 2,300 cell phone towers were knocked down by the quake, according to China Mobile, the country’s top carrier.
We have heard that the road to Wolong is heavily damaged, so access has been cut off. Roads are blocked so emergency rescue workers can not get in. This is a very mountainous region.

We will continue to keep you updated as we gain information.

The needs in the area to help the pandas and the care takers will most likely be great. We will let you know what the needs are as soon as we know.


Chair of Pandas International