A publicity officer of a quake-leveled county in Sichuan Province hung himself at his home on Monday, the local public security authority said, citing an initial investigation.

Feng Xiang, vice director of the publicity department of Beichuan, a county devastated by the May 12 earthquake last year, was found dead in his house at about 2:00 AM, officers with Beichuan's public security bureau said.

Feng, 33, saw his 8-year-old son killed in the earthquake. Feng worked hard in the disaster-relief work and was promoted to the post in June.

Feng attended a training course for officials involved in post-quake reconstruction in the scenic Jianggang Mountain in Jiangxi Province in December. The training course included post-disaster mental health assistance content.

Feng was interested in literature and had published a number of articles in magazines or on the Web.

(Xinhua News Agency April 20, 2009)