13:51

Aerial video captures Sichuan county hit by quake

The Chinese Academy of Sciences today released simulated aerial footage of Baoxing, a county in quake-stricken Ya’an.

Video recorded by a remote-sensing plane shows the terrain and natural environment after the earthquake, with buildings, a river and a stadium clearly visible.

13:40

The blood center in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, will open 11 spots to collect blood in dire need in the quake hit areas, including rare RH negative blood of various types, Xinhua reported.

More than 1,000 people in Chengdu donated blood on Saturday, and the city’s blood center has delivered 27.5 liters of plasma to the quake-hit areas, according to the report.

13:30

A rescue excavator plunged off a 300-meter deep cliff on Sunday morning in quake-stricken Baoxing County of Southwest China's Sichuan province, causing casualties.

The firefighting division of Tibetan-Qiang autonomous prefecture of Aba received reports of the accident at around 10:30 am, and dispatched five firefighters and one fire engine to the scene.

Rescue work is underway. The number of casualties is not immediately known.

13:10

A total of 203 people have been confirmed dead or missing in the 7.0-magnitude earthquake so far, according to the provincial civil affairs administration in Sichuan.

12:47

A monk and a woman in her 80s have started to give out free congee in front of Lushan County People’s Hospital, Nanfang Daily reported Sunday.

Sheng Zhi, who said he is from Lushan Fotu Temple, fills bowls for passers-by, while the elderly woman, who also lives at the temple, stands beside him handing out pickles.

Every monk from the temple is helping with relief efforts, he said, explaining that some are in charge of cooking congee (rice porridge) and the rest responsible for transporting it.

He said he was already onto his third bucket of congee, and added that his temple will continue to help out as long as people need them.

12:38

More than 1.5 million people in Southwest China's Sichuan province have been affected by Saturday's strong earthquake, said the Ministry of Civil Affairs here Sunday.

The quake has affected 69 counties in the province, said the statement from the ministry.

"A large number of buildings collapsed and were damaged in the quake-hit area. The authorities are still checking the details since the communication and transport are not fully available," the statement said.

The quake also affected neighboring Chongqing Municipality and Yunnan Province, it said.

About 400 buildings were damaged and eight collapsed in Chongqing and around 900 buildings were damaged in Yunnan, it said.