China Quake Kills More Than 260

2.25.2003

BEIJING —  With bloodied hands, survivors dug through rubble and called out for their missing loved ones after a powerful earthquake knocked down homes and schools on Monday in western China, officials said. At least 261 people were killed and more than 2,050 injured.

The quake toppled farmhouses on families and collapsed schools on students in Bachu county, near China’s mountainous border with Kyrgyzstan, officials said. Thousands were left homeless and without shelter overnight in 14-degree temperatures. The official Xinhua News Agency said 8,861 houses were destroyed. On Tuesday, rescuers continued the search for survivors amid the rubble of thousands of houses.