Miles still to go

We will never give up until the last moment is what we have heard most frequently from either State leaders or ordinary rescuers over the past week since the earthquake hit Sichuan province.

The hope of finding any survivor from the rubble is becoming slimmer and slimmer 72 hours after the quake, which is commonly believed to be the critical period for life-saving rescue efforts. But with the conviction of never giving up, rescuers continued to comb through the debris in the past two days and have saved more than 200 lives from the verge of death.

The fact that a woman who had been buried in the rubble for 127 hours was rescued by Russian rescuers suggests that unyielding will can sometimes work miracles, and unremitting efforts by rescuers make the difference between life and death for possible survivors.