Premier Wen flies to dangerous quake lake

By Yang Jian  |   2008-6-5  |     ONLINE EDITION

PREMIER Wen Jiabao is en route to the largest quake lake in Sichuan as fears grow that it could burst at any time, Xinhua news agency reported today.

Wen has ordered that people's safety is the top priority.

Wen took a helicopter to Tangjiashan Lake after arriving in quake-devastated Mianyang City this afternoon, the report said.

It was the second time the Premier will visit the quake lake.

Meanwhile, soldiers are expected to conduct a flood relief maneuver this afternoon in a town that stood between a big city and the lake, another Xinhua report said.

A total of 10,441 residents and livestock in Jiuling Township, 50 kilometers from the lowest level of the quake lake, had evacuated as of 1:28pm today, the report said.

Traffic restrictions will begin at 7pm across the town, the report added.

Juling Town of Jiangyou City has a population of 17,862. It includes a part of the country's longest oil pipeline.

It is also the last defense for Mianyang City, the second-largest city in Sichuan with more than 5 million people.

If the Jiuling section of the 1,252-kilometer pipeline is flooded, the flow of oil may be paralyzed in the country's southwest, China News Service said.

The Tangjiashan Lake formed after the Sichuan earthquake. It was likely to burst its banks in Beichuan County at any time in the next few days, Chen Lei, the county's Water Resources minister has said.

Liu Ning, the ministry's chief engineer, said there was a "93 percent probability" that the Tangjiashan quake lake will burst because of heavy rainfall or aftershocks.

The lake has gathered 215 million cubic meters of water, doubling the volume of West Lake in Hangzhou City. It will cause a great flood after bursting, said Liu.

A drainage channel at the lake was completed on May 31. Water drainage was expected to begin within two or three days.