Race to Find Quake Survivors(3000+ May Be Trapped Under Rubble)

[tekisui]

Source: Al Jazeera

More than 3,000 people may still be trapped under rubble nearly two days after a powerful earthquake devastated western Indonesia.

Rescue workers in the earthquake-devastated Indonesian city of Padang have been stepping up the hunt for survivors in the rubble of collapsed buildings, although hopes of finding many of the thousands missing still alive are beginning to fade.

As of Friday afternoon, almost 48 hours after the quake hit the Sumatran city, only a handful of survivors have been pulled from the wreckage.

The United Nations has said it believes more than 1,000 people have been killed, although the latest Indonesian government death toll stands at 777, with hundreds more injured.

With foreign aid teams and more heavy lifting gear arriving on the scene, Marlis Raham, the deputy governor of Indonesia's West Sumatra province, told Al Jazeera he was still hopeful more survivors would be found.

"I don't think it's too late, there's still hope that some of the people trapped can be saved," he said.

Raham said more than 15,000 buildings in Padang had collapsed in the powerful magnitude 7.6 quake.

more: http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2009/10/20091028420349763.html

[FourScore]

1. This is so tragic.; n/t