China Earthquake: A Firsthand Account

Yesterday my three sons and I went up to the earthquake stricken zone to bring water, food, clothes and tarps to people near BeiChuan. We went past MianYang into JiangYou and then westward towards Beichuan. We went through some very small villages. The further west we went the more destruction we saw.

When we got closer to Beichuan the road was closed. They would allow us in by foot but told us that everyone had been evacuated already. Since we wanted to pass out supplies and bless people we turned around and looked for people in need.

We stopped along the road where there were 15 or so people congregated. We got out to pass out water and mantou (steamed bread). The people were initially reluctant to take it, saying there were others who needed it more but I think they were just overwhelmed and didn’t know how to accept. Behind them was a former valley that was now filled with perhaps 50-100 meters of dirt and gravel. On either end of the dirt slide you could see clusters of homes.

They told us that there had been 10 or more clusters (units) of homes down there that were now buried. They estimated more than 100 people had been buried (one person estimated 300). I met one man whose home and family had all survived. Their homes were at the edge of the slide. I asked if they could still live in their homes and he said no.

My son and I put up a tarp over a “lean-to” that had been built. After we had been there maybe 20-30 minutes the village head came out to thank us. He convinced people to take the clothes we had brought.