Xinhua Headlines: In bitter cold, rescuers race against time to tackle aftermath of Xizang quake

* A 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck Dingri County in the city of Xigaze, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region on Tuesday morning, leaving 126 people dead and 188 others injured.

* After more than 10,000 rescuers have combed through all the areas of rubble, the search and rescue work has basically ended.

* A total of 407 trapped people have been rescued. Authorities will ensure the proper resettlement of affected residents.

LHASA, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- Battling biting cold, rescuers raced against time to search for survivors and speed up the resettlement of affected residents on Wednesday after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake struck southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region on Tuesday morning.

The quake struck Dingri County in the city of Xigaze at 9:05 a.m. Tuesday, leaving 126 people dead and 188 others injured. It also toppled over 3,600 houses.

After more than 10,000 rescuers have combed through all the areas of rubble, the search and rescue work has basically ended, Wang Fanghong, mayor of Xigaze, announced at a press briefing on Wednesday afternoon. A total of 407 trapped people have been rescued.

The focus of work has now shifted to the resettlement of the affected people and post-disaster reconstruction, said Hong Li, chief of the Xizang emergency management department.

In the next step, local authorities will continue to strengthen earthquake early warning, spare no effort in the search and rescue effort to ensure no one is unaccounted for, and go all out to treat the injured, Hong said.

Meanwhile, authorities will ensure the proper resettlement of affected residents, make sure they have warm shelters in which to spend the winter nights, prevent secondary disasters, and speed up disaster verification and post-disaster reconstruction.

With an average altitude of 4,500 meters, Dingri County is home to the northern base camp of Mount Qomolangma, the world's highest peak. With a population of over 60,000, the county is one of the most populous border counties in Xizang. There are 27 villages and about 6,900 people within a 20-km radius of the epicenter.

More than 14,600 people, including firefighters, soldiers, police officers and professional rescuers, joined the rescue operation. According to the Xigaze city government, over 46,500 affected residents have been relocated to 187 resettlement sites, with 3,705 tents set up.

A total of 484 tourists in Dingri County, including 13 foreigners, have returned to the urban area of Xigaze, with no casualties among them, rescue officials said Wednesday.

ALL-OUT RESCUE

Armed with flashlights and aided by sniffer dogs, the rescuers worked non-stop through the night after the quake, hoping to save as many people as they could.

In Tsogo Township, at the epicenter, and Chamco Township, the worst-hit area, rescuers combed the areas in the hope of finding survivors.

"We will seize the golden rescue period, strive for one more minute, search one more inch of land, and there might be more hope," said Tsewang Palden, an officer with the Lhasa fire brigade. He led other firefighters in the night search for signs of life, while villagers helped with flashlights.

As well as searching for survivors, they were also helping villagers save property and livestock. "As long as we can help, we will do our best," he said.

In Gurum Village in Chamco Township, Wang Kai'en, commander of a rescue team from the Xigaze fire brigade, led a rescue dog to comb through the rubble on Wednesday morning, searching for trapped people and livestock.

"We often have to rescue with our bare hands," Wang said, adding that the local low adobe houses were more likely to collapse after being cracked by the quake, and it was difficult to clear the site using shovels and pickaxes.

Local health authorities have dispatched 26 medical teams consisting of 581 medical staff with 107 ambulances to the quake region.

WARM RESETTLEMENT

Providing decent board and lodging to quake victims is a top priority. "Starting from the first night, no one should be left to starve or freeze," said Chen Mingxiang, Party chief of Dingri County.

The affected residents have been moved into makeshift tents at the relocation sites, with stoves, heaters and hot food to protect them from the freezing temperatures, which are forecast to drop to as low as minus 17 degrees Celsius within three days after the quake.

In Gurum Village, 40 tents have been erected in two resettlement sites, with stoves lit inside to keep the evacuees warm. Each resident has received more than two quilts and a mattress.

"There are people in charge of cooking for us. We had hot food last night," said Migmar, 57, whose family shares a tent with another family. She also received bottled water and snacks after supper.

"My younger brother and sister were saved. Finally, our villagers spent such a long night in the warm tents," said Tsering Phuntsog, Party chief of Gurum Village, who lost his 74-year-old mother. The village with 222 residents reported 22 deaths, including 11 children, he said, adding that all the houses in the village were damaged.

By 8 p.m. Tuesday, the village's streetlights were back on and the tents were brightly lit. Inside the tents, many people lit butter lamps to pray for their loved ones and fellow villagers who had died in the earthquake. Health posts have been set up around the area to provide medical services.

Additional stoves have been installed to help villagers prepare butter tea and tsampa, staples beloved by Tibetans.

The earthquake emergency response in Xizang has been raised to level I, the highest level, the region's emergency command center announced on Tuesday.

To ensure the lives of affected residents, 428,000 urgently needed items, including cotton tents, folding beds, quilts, blankets, cotton coats, cold-resistant shoes, heaters, generators, stoves, emergency lighting, food and medicine, as well as 81 vehicles of fuel, have been rushed to the quake-hit region.

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management have allocated 100 million yuan (about 13.9 million U.S. dollars) to support disaster relief efforts in Xizang. The National Development and Reform Commission has also allocated 100 million yuan to support post-disaster emergency recovery.

As rescue sped up, roads, telecommunications and power have been basically restored in the quake-hit region.

By 6 a.m. Wednesday, three national- and provincial-level roads had been repaired and two-way traffic had resumed, according to the Ministry of Transport.

As of 6:08 p.m. Tuesday, telecommunications had resumed in the three hard-hit townships near the epicenter, said the Xizang branch of China Mobile.

As of 10 p.m. Tuesday, power had been restored in the county seat and seven townships. "As we put in extra work at night, the affected residents can feel more assured," said Tendar, a local power-grid worker, who had worked for 17 hours when he spoke with Xinhua. (Video editors: Zhang Yichi, Zhang Yuhong, Zheng Qingbin, Zhang Mocheng) ■