Senior leader Li Keqiang urged local authorities in Sichuan
Province to act quickly and take intensified and concrete measures
to fight the unprecedented bad winter weather.
Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau
of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC),
made an inspection tour to the southwest province from Jan. 30 to
Feb. 2 to visit those affected by the snow and to direct disaster
relief work. Since Jan. 11, northeast Sichuan has suffered the most
serious ice and snow-incurred disasters since the founding of the
New China in 1949. This has caused a severe impact on production
and the lives of locals.
About 10.3 million residents, mainly in the mountainous and
impoverished regions, were affected by the disaster by Friday
noon.
Braving the snow, Li's tour covered more than 1,000 kilometers
and took in villages, bus stations, markets and a power plant in
the province's worst-hit areas, including Dazhou, Bazhong and
Guang'an.
He stressed local Party committees and governments at various
levels must regard disaster relief as the "most pressing task" and
comprehensively carry out anti-disaster measures, ensuring smooth
communications, transport and electricity supply as a priority.
(Xinhua News Agency February 3, 2008)
