Man lost to earthquake now 'dead'

CHENGDU: A man who has been missing since the Wenchuan earthquake has been declared legally dead by the Dujiangyan people's court in Sichuan province.

The man, surnamed Deng, is believed to be the first missing person to be declared dead in the province, Xia Chunguang, an information officer from Dujiangyan, said yesterday.

Deng was last seen on the afternoon of May 12, as he was driving his car to Hongkou in Dujiangyan.