The Ministry of Civil Affairs said 106 million yuan (US$15.5 million), as well as relief materials worth over 20.3 million yuan, have been donated to mudslide-devastated Zhouqu County in northwest China's Gansu Province, as of Sunday.

The money and relief materials were donated to Zhouqu through Gansu provincial civil affairs department, the ministry said in a statement released Sunday.

More than 80 percent of these materials had already been delivered to the mudslide-hit areas and the remainder are to be sent in the days to come, the ministry said.

The relief materials include 1,030 tents and 1,000 sleeping bags, as well as thousands of boxes of bottled water and instant noodles.

Authorities in Gansu have issued regulations to govern the purchase, acceptance, and delivery of relief materials to ensure they are sent to the affected people in a safe and speedy way.

The death toll from the massive mudslide in Zhouqu County has risen to 1,248 as of 4:00 PM Sunday, with 496 still missing, according to officials at the local disaster relief headquarters.

On Sunday, Chinese leaders, students, workers and members of the public across the nation paused for three minutes beginning at 10:00 AM to mourn the dead, one week after the devastating mudslide.

(Xinhua News Agency August 16, 2010)