Society
Search for the missing
By Wang Zhenghua and Shi Yingying (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-17 07:30
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 A relative of one of those who died in the fire weeps on Tuesday in the dance room of a sports school in Jing'an district of Shanghai, where a government team has been placed to assist survivors of the blaze, as well as the friends and relatives of those who perished in the tragedy. Gao Erqiang/China Daily |
SHANGHAI - Grief-stricken relatives continued to flock to the temporary shelters where survivors of the high-rise fire were taken, making inquiries about their loved ones, while others went to funeral home to identify the bodies of those who perished in Monday's blaze.
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Tearful friends and relatives searched the list of the missing.
"I've been searching since last night, but haven't heard anything," said Qian Rongwen, who scoured six hospitals looking for his sister-in-law.
"They now need my nephew to provide a photo of his mother for the search. The only place we haven't checked is the funeral home."
Another concerned relative is Lin Meiqi's sister. Lin, 59, lived on the 14th floor of the building. She was trapped alone in her apartment and it is doubtful whether she survived the blaze that engulfed the building.
"We were shown photos of people who had been hospitalized and she was not there," Lin's sister said. "I dread having to check the dead bodies at the funeral home."
At the temporary shelters, staff and volunteers were kept busy registering information and attempting to help answer inquiries from anxious friends and relatives.
Food and water were delivered, while doctors and psychological counselors attended to the survivors and advised friends and relatives.
Ren Chun, who works in the local community, said she was part of a group sent to the shelter on Monday and fielded inquiries all night.
"We hope we can give them some relief," she said.
The bereaved were astonished that such a tragedy could occur in Shanghai, a wealthy city that is one of the best-run urban areas in the country.
One middle-aged man shouted that he was being stopped from going to the funeral home to identify his wife.
"I couldn't sleep last night and have been waiting hours and hours. Why don't they tell me the truth, why don't they let me go?" asked the man, who withheld his name.
Outside the temporary shelters, mini-buses ferried people to the Longhua Funeral Home, which was swamped with grieving relatives.
One of the victims was Li Xinmu, a native of nearby Anhui province, who was painting on the scaffolding when the fire broke out.
"We tried to contact him by cell phone on Monday but it was shut down. We then realized that something bad must have happened," his nephew told China Daily at the funeral home.
After spending eight hours searching around the fire-stricken apartment building on Monday night, the younger Li arrived at the funeral home on Tuesday morning, where he identified his uncle whose body was partly charred by the fire.
"His hands were burnt down to the bones and his head was swollen," said the younger Li, who related that his uncle had been the breadwinner of the family, as well as a beloved father and husband.
At the funeral home, others spoke about how they identified their loved ones by their teeth and other identifying marks.
No compensation has been mentioned so far.
Shanghai, a city of 20 million and the venue of the recent Expo, has undergone a frenzy of construction in recent years, ranging from high-rises that dot its skyline to new subway lines, highways and airport upgrades.
But unsafe building work remains a chronic problem in China.
Last year, a 13-story apartment building in Shanghai toppled as it neared completion, killing one worker. Investigations found the collapse may have been caused by dirt that was excavated from beneath the building and piled around it.
China Daily
(China Daily 11/17/2010 page3)
