(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-05-15 07:27

All the tourists and journalists stranded in Wolong in quake-hit Sichuan province are safe, an official said Wednesday afternoon.

They include more than 50 foreigners.

Zhang Wenxiang, an official with the Wenchuan Wolong Giant Panda Administration, said there have been no deaths or injuries among the stranded groups, who took shelter at a restaurant.

Telecommunication links in Wolong have been cut off since Monday.

Wolong is famous for its Giant Panda Protection and Research Center, which is located 30 km southwest of the quake's epicenter.

In another development, 588 people from Taiwan are among a larger group of tourists stranded in Jiuzhaigou, a scenic area in southwestern Sichuan province, an official said on Wednesday.

Yang Yi, the spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, told a press conference in Beijing that a rescue operation was in progress.

The Chongqing branch of Air China said four Boeing 737s had been sent to bring back the tourists, whose total number is unknown.

The Sichuan tourism bureau on Tuesday stopped all new tourist groups from entering the province.

Also on Tuesday, the Sichuan provincial emergency management office said more than 2,000 tourists, including 15 Britons, were stranded in the Aba prefecture.

Xinhua