More Indian Quake Survivors; Aid Floods In
Jan. 28, 2001 -- After finding several people still alive under rubble, exhausted rescue workers using everything from bulldozers to their bare hands clawed through ruins today hoping more survivors could be found.
Survivors found in mountain of rubble
Rescuers say that with the right conditions, lack of injuries and a possible water supply, a person could survive in the rubble for several days.
But even as hope spread, more than 6,000 people were confirmed dead throughout the western state of Gujarat, the worst hit by Friday's quake.
Officials estimate the final death toll could be as high as 15,000, with thousands more injured and many more still buried beneath the rubble left by India's worst earthquake in half a century.
The quake hit India as the country was preparing to celebrate its 51st Republic Day. The holiday meant most people were home with their families, raising the death toll considerably, officials said.
Following the Sound of Survivors
In Bhuj, a desert city of 150,000 people and closest to the epicenter, more than 1,500 bodies have been found so far.
Today soldiers followed the faint sounds of survivors as they continued their digging through debris and ruins using everything from drills, cranes to pick hammers and often their bare hands.
Digging in one mountain of rubble, air force troops and police followed the sounds of a baby crying for almost 30 hours, shouting with joy when they made eye contact with the 18-month-old infant and her mother. The child, her pulse week, was rushed to an air force hospital. Her mother died before rescuers could reach her.
Just next door rescuers discovered a woman named Das who had been trapped in bed with the corpses of her husband and young daughter. her face was purple from lack of circulation and her head bloated, but rescuers talked to her, giving her water and biscuit as they chipped away at a hole in the wall of her sunken bedroom.
In Anjar, a town of about 25,000 people 30 miles southeast of Bhuj, rescue workers unearthed a three year old girl in a narrow lane where 400 school children and 50 teachers marching in a Republic Day parade were trapped when the quake hit.
Nearby, rescuers freed a 50-year-old man in a state of shock, giving him small sips of water as they chipped away at the stones around his legs for five hours.
Relief Floods in From Abroad
Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee said today federal emergency funds would not be enough to help all the victims of the quake and appealed for Indians to contribute money and help, "no matter how small the amount," while at a news conference Indian Agriculture Minister Bhaskar Barua reminded the world of his government's policy of Indian self sufficiency before thanking world leaders for their help.
Barua told reporters that as many as 750 doctors and other health workers, more than 5,000 rescue workers, dozens of bulldozers, 36,000 blankets and 10,800 tents have been sent to help the Indian army and civilian rescue teams. Vajpayee plans to visit the earthquake-torn region Monday.
In ravaged Gujarat, the state's home minister, Haren Pandya, issued an international plea for more food, medical supplies, satellite phones, torches, candles, lanterns, tents, beds, blankets and jeeps.
"The quantum of our need is so much more than what we have," he said.
He said authorities would know Monday if any more people were alive under the ruins. At that point, the recovery effort would shift to a relief effort, clearing rubble, removing dead bodies and caring for the dispossessed.
By this morning, foreign assistance was pouring into the region. Relief planes landed every 10 minutes at Bhuj airport, where the terminal had been flattened but the runway survived.
Cranes, generators, cutting equipment, search and rescue dogs, seismic monitors and poles with long cameras attached arrived with professional rescue teams from Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Turkey, among others.
The United States, the European Union, Canada, and other European countries have also sent aid, while Taiwan and Japan say they are ready to send rescue workers, supplies and cash once they get approval from the Indian government.
The International Red Cross has an appeal for $1.2 million to aid victims of the disaster. To donate call 1-800- HELP-NOW.
Lingering Aftershocks
Researchers at BARC, the Bhabha Atomic Research Center, India's premier atomic research center recorded 257 tremors, 20 of them above magnitude 5.0, since the earthquake struck just before 9 a.m.Friday. Today, two aftershocks, one at 5.9, the other at 4.6 on the Richter scale didn't cause additional damage, but did panic survivors in the already earthquake-stressed area.
People rushed out of their homes as they were awakened by thetremor around 6.45 a.m. in Bhuj and Ahmedabad, the region's commercial center.
The aftershock woke many of the thousands left homeless by the quake sleeping in the cold outdoors. The family of Navinbhai Arjha, a 47-year-old contractor, were camped outside their house.
Arjha and his male relatives sat around a small fire as the temperature dipped to 55 degrees. Their house in a well-off neighborhood was intact but marred by by deep cracks.
More than half the houses in Bhuj were reduced to rubble. The rest were broken, partially broken or had sagged to the ground. In the congested old part of the city, dogs, pigs and cows foraged for food in the streets made narrower by mounds of rubble. Household items such as pillows and mattresses could be seen under the debris.
Industry in Region Crippled, But Not Paralyzed
As a result of the quake, industry-driven Gujarat, lost approximately $500 million of business and industry, according to FICCI, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry. The number is expected to increase over the next several days.
Most industry in the region is still not functioning. Gujarat is the home of India's largest oil and petrochemical refineries and has two atomic energy plants, although the quake and its aftershocks haven't damaged any of the major installations.
Kandla, one of India's largest port cities, was partially damaged, but able to restore 50 percent of its operations so supplies can be brought in. Many roads and bridges into the area are still blocked and damaged.
ABCNEWS.com's Claire Moore, ABCNEWS' Richard Gizbert in Bhuj, ABCNEWS Radio, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.