A strong quake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale jolted Wenchuan County in southwest China's Sichuan Province Monday afternoon.
Tremors were felt across China except the northeastern Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces and the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous region.
The quake has caused deaths and injuries, destroyed towns and roads, and cut off electricity, telecommunications, transport and water supply. The Chinese government has taken a series of measures for disaster relief.
Following are the latest facts and figures of the quake and relief work.
--The death toll from the quake had risen to 28,881 nationwide as of 2 p.m. Saturday, while 198,347 people were injured. The toll in Sichuan alone exceeded 28,300, with many still buried.
--In Sichuan's neighbors, 364 people were reported dead in Gansu Province as of 2 p.m. Saturday, 109 in Shaanxi Province, 15 in Chongqing Municipality, two in Henan Province, one in Yunnan Province, and one in Hubei Province.
--The quake, which also triggered landslides in the mountainous province, damaged 33,333 hectares of farmland, including more than 10,000 hectares of wheat and rape and more than 20,000 hectares of vegetables in 13 worst-hit cities and counties, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
As the disaster also destroyed irritation systems in some areas, up to 100,000 hectares of rice paddies might have to be used to grow alternative crops.
--The central budget had allocated 3.982 billion yuan (569 U.S. dollars)to the relief fund for quake-hit areas as of Saturday afternoon.
--Donors at home and abroad had contributed 6.023 billion yuan (860 million U.S. dollars) in cash and goods for disaster relief as of 1 p.m. Saturday, according to the Information Office of the State Council.
(Xinhua News Agency May 18, 2008)