The quake also urged the strengthening of the government's capability in emergency rescue and relief. China Earthquake Administration's rescue team had been expanded from 220 to 500 people. The national team was now able to undertake simultaneously and round-the-clock 18 rescue operations at nine sites, against the three sites a year before. Rapid report of major earthquakes was faster, within 10 minutes after the strike for the provincial capital cities' neighboring areas and 20 minutes for many other parts of the country, both five minutes quicker than a year earlier.

    May 12 was designated by the Ministry of Civil Affairs as a national "Disaster Protection and Reduction Day". This was to remind people of taking precautions against disasters. On this memorial day, governments in the country were expected to stage various disaster protection educational or training events.

    The revised Law on Protecting Against and Mitigating Earthquake Disasters went to effect on May 1. Together with the Constitution, the Law on Emergency Response, and Regulations on Government Information Release, the disaster combat work had a solid legal basis in China.

    However, the fire that broke out on Feb. 9 at the new CCTV headquarters, which was caused by fireworks, showed the urban disaster protection system was not without worries. In many Chinese big cities clusters of high-rise buildings are a common scene. The safety and fire-fighting capability of the urban areas should be a focus of the future disaster-combating work.

    Last September, an inspection team composed of members of the country's top political advisory body toured a number of provinces to observe the disaster emergency response system. They found that, in general, the emergency response administrative and regulatory system was incomplete, the monitoring and pre-warning system was weak, and public involvement was inadequate.

    Now, a year after the Wenchuan earthquake, raising the awareness and strengthening the mechanism of disaster combating had become a focal point of the government work.

    "We are about to organize an Earthquake Preparation and Disaster Reduction Knowledge Competition involving 500,000 participants, in an attempt to impart the knowledge to people in schools, companies, communities, townships and villages," Sichuan Earthquake Administration deputy director Wang Li said.

    The quake combating work in Sichuan was a comprehensive effort that centered on preparation.

    The government took the lead, and the general public, people from all walks of life, are expected to join in.

    "Only when you're fully prepared, will you be free from panic," Wang Li said with a thoughtful look.

(Xinhua News Agency May 12, 2009)