Chinese Rescue Team Continues Relief Work in Quake-hit Japan

The Chinese international search and rescue team Wednesday continued their relief effort in Japan's Oofunato city, which was devastated by a massive earthquake and ensuing tsunami.

Bringing along with their equipment, the rescuers went through to some of the ruined areas in Oofunato in northeastern Iwate Prefecture, and conducted door-to-door search, trying their best to look for survivors.

Equipped with radar life detectors and sonic detectors, the rescuers also used golf clubs they found in the ruins to smash car windows to see whether there are survivors inside vehicles flipped upside down by tsunami.

Buildings that were not hit by tsunami and areas where missing people or death have been reported were the priority sites for the search and rescue operation, according to Peng Bibo, chief medical officer of the rescue team.

A shortage of water looms in the quake-hit area. In order to save water, the rescuers haven't washed their faces nor brushed their teeth since they arrived here, said Chen Qingkai, deputy chief of the Chinese rescue team.

The Chinese team, comprising 15 members, arrived in Oofunato Sunday night, and was the first overseas team to join and help out the relief work in the city.

Rescue teams from the United States and Britain will also be joining the local and Chinese rescuers to carry out relief work in the area, the municipal government said.

A chartered plane carrying the first batch of relief goods China committed to Japan's earthquake rescue operations arrived in Japan on Monday evening.

The relief package is composed of 2,000 blankets, 900 cotton tents and 200 emergency lights, which were valued at 7.2 million yuan (US$1.1 million), according to Yang Hongbin, a Shanghai-based official with the Ministry of Commerce.

China's Red Cross Society decided Tuesday to donate another 5 million yuan (around 757,600 dollars) in emergency aid to its Japanese counterpart. The society donated 1 million yuan to Japan on Saturday.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said Tuesday that China will continue to provide Japan with necessary assistance in accordance with the latter's needs.

"We believe the people of Japan can tide over the difficulty as this," said Jiang at a regular news briefing.

Jiang said the Chinese Foreign Ministry immediately launched an emergency response mechanism after the huge earthquake struck off the northeast coast of Japan last Friday, triggering an array of disasters including a massive tsunami.

The ministry has been striving to collect information about Chinese nationals in the quake-stricken areas, and offered help to the Chinese citizens being affected in the huge quake, said Jiang.

The ministry announced Monday that China will provide 30 million yuan worth of emergency humanitarian assistance to Japan following the massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake and ensuing tsunami that have left thousands dead or missing.

China's Ministry of Defense also said Tuesday the country's military is willing to offer quake-relief materials and rescue teams to Japan.

Apart from relief materials, the armed forces could also send medical, rescue, or disease prevention teams or a hospital ship to the quake zone as soon as possible to "help the Japanese overcome the difficulties," the ministry said in a statement on its website.

Defense Minister Liang Guanglie last Friday conveyed his condolences to Japan over the massive earthquake and expressed willingness to offer help.