More than 14,000 rescue workers have arrived in Tibet to continue the search for survivors after a strong earthquake killed at least 126 people in a remote part of western China.
More than 400 people have been rescued, Chinese state media says, since the quake struck on Tuesday, some 50 miles from the base of Mount Everest, destroying thousands of homes.
Vice-Premier Zhang Guoqing arrived on Wednesday to oversee the operation, which is being hampered by winter temperatures that dropped to -16C overnight.
Earthquakes are common in the region, which lies on a major geological fault line, but Tuesday’s was one of China’s deadliest in recent years.
The magnitude 7.1 quake, which struck at a depth of 10 km (six miles), according to data from the US Geological Survey, was also felt in Nepal and parts of India, which neighbour Tibet.
Internet access is restricted in Tibet, which is tightly controlled by Beijing, and reporters cannot travel there without government permission. So much of what we know about the quake and its aftermath is from Chinese state media.
The air force has been deployed and drones dispatched to help rescuers, as President Xi Jinping called for all-out efforts to minimise casualties and resettle affected residents.
State-owned People’s Daily says more than 30,000 people have been relocated in the region. Electricity and mobile phone service in Tingri county, near the epicentre, were restored by Wednesday morning, according to state media.
Officials estimate that more than 3,600 buildings had collapsed, potentially leaving thousands without shelter.
Videos published by China’s state broadcaster CCTV showed houses destroyed and buildings brought down in Tibet’s holy Shigatse city, with rescue workers wading through debris and handing out thick blankets to locals.