Natural disasters are an unfortunate occurrence of life, but for a nation ravaged by nearly two consecutive earthquakes with a simultaneous drought in the Southern province, it seems almost unfair. I am definitely late in this post about the Yushu-Qinghai Earthquake but it still warrants some thoughts. Despite Yushu county's remote location on the Tibetan plateau, rescue efforts have been swift with more than 11,000 soldiers, about 1,500 professional rescue workers and 2,800 firefighters and police specialists. However, most volunteers are not accustomed to the high altitude of the area and become vulnerable to altitude sickness and shortness of breath.
According to a recent CCTV broadcast, local residents--although unskilled-- have been valuable assets in utilizing the area's resources and being immune to altitude sickness. Interestingly enough, the majority of locals in Yushu county are of Tibetan ethnicity and do not speak nor understand Mandarin Chinese. The earthquake's rescue efforts have become a test as well as an opportunity for the government to show its softer side in regards to long-standing political and cultural tensions between the Han Chinese and Tibetans.
I love the picture above because it captures the diversity of rescuers (Tibetan monks in red, Han Chinese government workers in orange). Let's hope that a common ground can be maintained for now.
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