May 13, 2008 6:16 pm US/Central
Chinese Americans Helping With Quake Relief Effort
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
The official death toll in China from the worst earthquake there in three decades has climbed past 12,000 people and there's no doubt it will go much higher.
CBS 2's Vince Gerasole reports Chicagoans whose loved ones were caught in the gragedy are now trying to help with the relief effort.
The fortunate ones have been pulled from the rubble, but thousands more are missing and feared dead. The images of grief and destruction haunted Shufen Zhao in Chicago, whose sisters live in the area.
"She said the whole town was in a total panic," Zhao said.
Reports of 900 students trapped beneath a collapsed school were particularly disturbing. One of Zhao's sisters calls that same village home. It took hours before they could speak by phone.
"She was basically trying to hide underneath a table when the earthquake happened," Zhao said. "Basically the earthquake was throwing them around. They were not able to hold anything. They were crawling on the floor for a few minutes."
In Chicago's Chinatown, the lunchtime crowd was glued to televised updates from the Chinese news agency. It took restaurateur Tony Hu 10 hours Monday to reach his parents in Chengdu, 60 miles form the epicenter.
"Everybody worried it might happen again and everyone worried about relatives," Hu said.
With roads destroyed and entire villages leveled, the need for help is undeniable. Hu is now organizing a local relief effort to help send supplies to the region.
"I am from China," Hu said. "I feel I want to, I must, like it's my job. I want to do something for it."
"We need all kinds of assistance – food, drinking water, clothes, tents," said Huixun Zhang, spokesperson for the Chinese Consulate.
The Chicago office of China's consul general reports that millions of dollars have already been raised within China for disaster aid, but the task is overwhelming and towns we may not recognize but some locals know as their childhood home are in need.
The Chinese government has dispatched thousands of soldiers to the region but rain is hampering their efforts. With many victims buried under concrete, more heavy equipment is needed.
Among the missing in central china are two dozen British and American tourists who were on a panda-watching expedition when the disaster struck.
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