Official: new schools in quake zone of China´s Sichuan to be quake-proof

Source: Xinhua | 05-08-2009 17:40

CHENGDU, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A local construction official said Friday that all school buildings being rebuilt in Chengdu, capital of southwest Sichuan Province, would be "high-quality" and quake-proof.

Huang Ping, director of the Chengdu Construction Commission, told a press conference that the designs for new school buildings were all up to national quake-resistance standards and the province would spare no effort to build high-quality schools.

China announced Thursday that 5,335 students had been confirmed killed or missing in Sichuan after the 8.0 earthquake struck May 12 last year.

Statistics from the provincial education department showed that 3,340 schools needed to be rebuilt after the earthquake.

After the quake, China's national legislature amended the Law on Precautions Against Earthquake and Relief of Disaster last year, which said schools and hospitals must be designed to stand strong earthquakes. School buildings should withstand quakes of at least 8.0. The new law took effect last Friday.