Premier Wen Jiabao has made another trip to the earthquake zone in Sichuan Province. He was there to inspect the swelling Tangjiashan barrier lake.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (front C) is helped as he inspects the drainage of the Tangjiashan quake lake in southwest China's Sichuan Province on June 5, 2008. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)
The third time the Premier landed the quake zone, this time to assess safety operations at the Tangjiashan lake.
Wen Jiabao inspected the drainage channel at Tangjiashan. This is the biggest natural dam formed by landslides during the earthquake.
Frequent aftershocks and downpours have brought the unstable lake ever closer to bursting its banks, and brought potential disaster to hundreds of thousands of residents downstream.
For days, troops and engineers raced against time to complete a drainage channel and move 250,000 residents to safety.
Wen Jiabao said the situation is now at a critical moment, and the most important thing is to ensure there are no casualties. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (front L) speaks as he inspects the drainage of the Tangjiashan quake lake in southwest China's Sichuan Province on June 5, 2008. (Xinhua/LiuWeibing)
Wen Jiabao said "As we deal with the 200 million cubic meters of water in this lake, not one single person can be allowed to be hurt. It's our responsibility to keep the people safe."
The Premier took a close look into the sluice, which is draining water off the lake. He was briefed on the latest details of the rising water and the evacuation and drainage plan. Wen Jiabao urged everyone to be on high alert and do everything they can to avoid more damage and casualties.
The Premier also met Russian helicopter crews and relief troops at Mianyang airport. He arrived in the quake-hit area on Thursday afternoon.
(CCTV June 6, 2008)