Xu Caihou, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice chairman of the Central Military Commission arrived in Wenxian County of in south Gansu Province on the morning of May 21 for the purpose of extending greetings to the officers and men in the forefront of earthquake rescue and relief, and directing the latter in their effort of disaster relief.

　　Wenxian County is one of the areas grievously affected by the rippling effect of the fatal earthquake that struck Wenxian County of south Sichuan Province, victimizing 250,000 people from 305 villages of 20 townships and towns, causing landslides in 286 villages and leaving 168 bridges damaged.

　　In the afternoon, Xu Caihou inspected the rebuilding site of the No.109 tunnel on the Baoji-Chengdu Railway line. In the earthquake, 12 carriages of a fuel tank train caught fire in the No.109 tunnel on Huixian-Yuguan section of the Baoji-Chengdu Railway line, paralyzing railway operation. As a result, the delivery of the disaster relief materials to the quake-hit areas was blocked.

　　Xu Caihou visited the disaster relief officers and men who were rushingly repairing the railway, and conveyed cordial greetings and paid high tribute to them on behalf of Chairman Hu Jintao and the Central Military Commission. He stressed that to reopen the No.109 tunnel as soon as possible and put the Baoji-Chengdu Railway line and the northwest traffic arteries back to normal operation is of great significance to the overall situation of earthquake rescue and relief.

　　After that, Xu Caihou went down to the badly quake-hit areas of Wudu and Wenxian.

　　Du Jincai, assistant director of the General Political Department of the PLA and Li Changcai, political commissar of the Lanzhou Military Area Command, visited the officers and men together with Xu Caihou.

　　(May 22, PLA Daily)                                           Editor: Dong Zhaohui