Chinese womans miraculous survival after 150 hrs post-quake ordeal

Survival tales continue in the Chinese province of Sichuan, the worst hit in Mondays earthquake of 7.8 magnitude. A woman was rescued last evening after remaining buried under the debris for more than 150 hours.

New Delhi, May 19 : Survival tales continue in the Chinese province of Sichuan, the worst hit in Monday's earthquake of 7.8 magnitude. A woman was rescued last evening after remaining buried under the debris for more than 150 hours.

She was stuck under the broken structures and the rescuers had to amputate her legs, as she unconsciously murmured to the doctors not to save her.

A rescue team had discovered her buried under the debris early on Friday, but could rescue her only after three days, as the rescue work had been very difficult due to oddly misshaped structures on top of the woman and continuous aftershocks.

The woman named Yu Jinhua was saved alive around 8:10 pm on Sunday from a flattened power plant in the Yingxiu Town of quake epicenter Wenchuan County.

"This is already a miracle. We believe she has been trapped more than 150 hours. We had to be very careful and we tried five different plans. There was a dead body in the way, and her legs were already putrefied. She was in a delirious state. She murmured she was already in a hospital and plead to stop saving her. We fed her milk and water, and her families were there to reassure her," Xinhua quoted Lu Changchun, who led the rescue operation, as saying.

Rescuers dug a five-meter deep whole to reach the woman, and had to amputate her legs before saving her.

Yu has been taken to a nearby surgery.

In Yingxiu province, one Shen Peiyun aged 53, was rescued from his collapsed office building at 3:36 pm Sunday, after 146 hours in the rubble. He suffered head injuries and was sent to Huaxi Hospital affiliated to Sichuan University in Chengdu. Doctors said he had a "very good chance" of recovery.

Shen was conscious and clutched the hand of a People's Liberation Army doctor throughout his 30-minute trip by helicopter to the provincial capital Chengdu, the China Central Television reported.

ANI