Nearly 70 dams in danger of bursting in China

Chengdu: Nearly 70 dams scarred by the force of China's most powerful earthquake in three decades were in danger of bursting, the government said on Sunday, while looming rains added to worries about relief efforts for millions of homeless survivors.

A magnitude 5.8 aftershock rattled the quake area yesterday afternoon, causing office towers to sway in Beijing, 1,300 kilometres away. There was no immediate information on any new damage.

Scary

The aftershock lasted about 20 seconds in the Sichuan provincial capital of Chengdu. At one teahouse, customers scurried into an open courtyard.

"It's scary, but we're getting used to it," said Mary Nong, a 46-year-old telephone company worker.

The Water Resources Ministry said in a statement yesterday that 69 dams in central Sichuan province were in danger of collapse. It did not give further details.

The government had earlier said the quake affected 391 dams, mostly small structures.

State television reported that a survivor trapped by the initial quake was rescued alive Friday, more than eleven days after the disaster.

Xiao Zhihu, an 80-year-old bedridden man, was found in Mianzhu north of Chengdu after being trapped in his collapsed house, the report said. He survived because his wife was able to get food to him through the rubble, but there were no further details given or a reason for the two-day delay in reporting the rescue.

The confirmed death toll from the May 12 quake rose to 62,664, with another 23,775 people missing, Cabinet spokesman Guo Weimin said. Premier Wen Jiabao has said the number of dead could surpass 80,000.