Nation Mourning for 32,476 People Died in Wenshan Sichuan Earthquake
Sunday, May 18, 2008 – 11:09 pmToday China began a three days mourning for the 32.476 people kidded in the Wenshan Sichuan Earthquake on May 12. At 4:58am, the national flag at Tian’anmen Square flew at half-mast.
All public amusements will be suspended for three days from today. The State Council ordered a nationwide display of respect for the dead on May 18. The public are asked to stand in silence for three minutes from 2:28pm today, while automobiles, trains and ships would sound their air sirens. During the mourning days, the torch relay for the Beijing Olympic Games will be suspended to mourn the quake victims.
The confirmed death toll from the disaster has risen to 32,476 by 2:00 pm Sunday, and the toll would possibly rise to more than 50,000 as many, still buried in rubbles, are feared dead. In Sichuan alone, a total of 31,978 people were killed since Monday’s deadly 8.0-magnitude earthquake, with 209,905 others injured. Statistics from the emergency response office show that the death toll in Deyang and Mianyang cities of the province hit 10,341 and 11,874 respectively. Outside Sichuan, the death toll was 364 in Gansu Province, 113 in Shaanxi Province, 16 in Chongqing Municipality, two in Henan Province, one in Yunnan Province, one in Hubei Province, and one in Hunan Province.
