Woman rescued 9 days after China quake; death toll rises above 41,000

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A woman trapped in a tunnel at a power plant was rescued nine days after an earthquake struck central China - the only person found alive Wednesday - while the government ordered budgets slashed to free money for relief efforts. State agencies were told to cut planned spending by 5 percent this year, which will go to create a 70 billion yuan US$10 billion reconstruction fund, the State Council, China's Cabinet, said in a statement. Some signs of normalcy returned to the quake area, as more schools reopened, but a lack of tents underscored the massive task facing the government in sheltering 5 million left homeless. The quake survivor found Wednesday - identified as Zeng Changhui, whose age was not known - had been trapped in a water diversion tunnel at the Jinhe Hydropower Plant in Hongbai town in Sichuan province, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. She was taken by helicopter to a hospital to treat multiple fractures in her right arm, ribs and lower back, but Dr. Pu Jinhui said her injuries were not life-threatening, according to the report.