French doctor hailed for disaster aid

BEIJING - Major Jean-Guillaume Houel has become a symbol of the bravery and compassion shown by foreign volunteers in dealing with the horrific aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008.

The French army doctor was part of an 11-member medical rescue team sent by Paris to help survivors 13 days after the 8-magnitude tremor that left almost 90,000 people dead or missing.

Although just one of hundreds of experts who arrived from overseas, 34-year-old Houel's contribution to the relief efforts is still lauded by Chinese people.