China today mourned over deaths of thousands of people in last week’s mudslide in a remote northwest town. Leaders, students, workers and members of the civil society observed three minutes silence at 10 am Sunday to commemorate the deaths. At least 1,248 people lost their lives, while 496 were reported missing after a devastative mudslide struck Zhouqu County, in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Gansu Province last week.
Chinese President Hu Jintao, top legislator Wu Bangguo, Premier Wen Jiabao and other top Chinese leaders stood and paid silent tribute to the victims prior to a meeting by the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee held in Beijing on Sunday morning.
At the Dongjie Village in Zhouqu, over 5,000 rescuers and villagers were still looking for survivor. They bowed their heads to pay respect to those who lost lives in the fateful incident. A huge black banner hung in front of the mourners, and wreaths lay on the ground. The white lettering on the banner read, "Mourning in deep grief for deceased compatriots of the Zhouqu massive mudslide."
Meanwhile, some survivors still sat on debris hoping their relatives would have survived as well. In make shift camps, some bowed their heads, while some knelt. Some put their palms together to pray for the victims.
