South China Morning Post
July 28, 2006

Chinese media reports have accused the Yunnan government of failing to alert the public about seismic warnings ahead of a July 22 quake that claimed at least 22 lives.

Mainland media reports have accused the Yunnan government of failing to alert the public about seismic warnings ahead of last week’s earthquake that claimed at least 22 lives. The magnitude-5.1 quake hit northeast Yunnan near Zhaotong on July 22 and a spate of reports has accused the authorities of not heeding predictions that an earthquake was imminent. The reports came on the eve of today’s 30th anniversary of the 7.8-magnitude Tangshan earthquake that killed more than 240,000 people. Since the 1976 disaster, claims have surfaced that the Tangshan government did not heed experts’ early warnings. Last weekend’s jolt, centred in Zhaotong’s Yanjin county, drew media attention earlier this week when CCTV’s Law Report said the Yunnan Earthquake Bureau had predicted early this month that a quake would hit the area.