China Exclusive: China's new village in quake zone honors French missionary

China has named a rebuilt quake-hit village after a French missionary, who discovered giant pandas here more than a century ago.

Located in Baoxing County in the southwestern province of Sichuan, David New Village -- named after Armand David, who was also a zoologist -- was built following a 7.0 magnitude quake on April 20, 2013.

"Everyone here agreed on the village's name, after all it was Father David who made our village famous," said Luo Yumei, the deputy town chief of Fengtongzhai.

"We will never forget him. He is a part of this land," said Luo.

More than 140 years ago, while Armand David was working in the township, he came across a giant panda, which locals called the black-and-white bear. The animal was caught with the intention of sending it to Paris alive, unfortunately it died during transportation. However, it was preserved and remains on display at the French National Museum, Paris.

The new village is home to 168 villagers from 39 families, whose houses were either seriously damaged in the quake or were deemed dangerous places to live due to the potential for landslides.

Initiated by the local government and China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, the renovation program set out to turn the mountainous village into a modern resort characterized by Catholic culture and the region's pandas.

The village consists of 39 villa-like houses, which the owners plan to make into hostels in the future, made from bamboo and local cedar. Walls and tiles of the villas were made of hay and mud, which can keep warm and prevent the buildings from moisture.

Construction of the village, which also has a recreation center and a clinic, began in April 2014 and is expected to be complete by Oct. 1 this year, just in time for the week-long National Day holiday. The only highway to the village is under construction.

"Cultural protection and environmental protection are also important to this integrated tourism development project," said Luo.

The 176-year-old wooden Dengchigou Catholic Church in the village, where Father David once worked and lived, survived the quake almost intact. Three quarters of the villagers are Catholics, and they still go to church regularly.

A panda house will also be built some 20 minutes of walk from the village and a pair of pandas will follow later. It is scheduled to open to the public within the year, and will serve to highlight panda protection initiatives.

Lushan earthquake killed 196 and affected 2 million people, leaving more than 100,000 families homeless.

The three-year rehabilitation program, which involves more than 2,700 government-initiated projects, covers a severely hit area of 10,706 square kilometers that includes six counties in Ya'an, and six towns in Chengdu. Endi