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Floods Close 'Lifeline' Highway to Sichuan Quake Zone

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A major road to Wenchuan County, epicenter of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008, has been blocked after floods destroyed two sections of the road, provincial authorities said Tuesday.

Late Monday, rainstorms triggered floods that left two breaks on the No. 213 National Highway in Sichuan Province -- an 80-meter break in Maoxian County and a 70-meter gap in Wenchuan County, said Feng Shuming, spokesman for Sichuan's transport department.

More than 10,000 vehicles run to and from the mountainous quake zone everyday on the No. 213 National Highway, commonly known as the "lifeline" for reconstruction.

Hundreds of vehicles are jammed near the breaks, but no casualties have been reported.

Construction workers have been sent to repair the road, Feng said.

The road was closed from May 29 to 31 after being damaged by a landslide.

(Xinhua News Agency June 8, 2010)

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