Storms sweep stricken region, hitting aid supplies as death toll reaches 2,064
Tania Branigan in Beijing
China has ordered the halt of public entertainment tomorrow as it holds a day of mourning for the 2,000 victims of last week's earthquake in western Qinghai province. Flags will fly at half-mast in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, theatre and sporting performances are cancelled, karaoke bars shut and the culture ministry has ordered suspension of all online music, games, comics, films and TV shows.
The nationwide commemoration was announced as hail and snow hit the high-altitude Qinghai region, hampering relief efforts, after a mass prayer for victims in Gyegu near the centre of the quake in the predominantly Tibetan Yushu county yesterday was battered by sandstorms, above. State media reported several aid lorries had overturned on the icy mountain road running 600 miles from the provincial capital of Xining. Officials reported the death toll had risen to 2,064, with more than 12,000 injured and 175 still missing. China says the quake was 7.1 magnitude.
Three people were rescued yesterday, including a four-year-old girl and an elderly woman, but hopes of finding more survivors are fading. Officials in Qinghai have announced mourning ceremonies and a three-minute silence across the province, the state news agency Xinhua reported. The Chinese flag will also be lowered at embassies and consulates abroad in a mark of respect for the victims, the State Council – China's cabinet – announced. The ministry of culture has ordered officials to supervise entertainment venues and punish anyone breaking the ban.
Meanwhile, sanitation is deteriorating in Yushu's temporary camps, Oxfam has warned. The charity is running sessions on basic hygiene information.
Chinese officials have also stepped up efforts to prevent an outbreak of plague. Ni Daxin, an epidemiologist with the Chinese centre for disease control and prevention, told China Daily that marmots (squirrels) – which carry the disease – could awake early from hibernation due to the quake and aftershocks.
David Yeats, an Australian helping relief efforts in the area, said while people were suffering from the cold, the sleet had at least dampened down the dust clouds blowing through the town.
But he added: "People are looking pretty miserable. A lot of people are still living in the ruins of their homes and a lot still don't have tents. In the last few days there have been hundreds of trucks coming in, but getting supplies to people is a hurdle because some don't want to move into the town, which is pretty crowded now".
He said teams were now clearing rubble on the outskirts. "Who knows how many people might be underneath?"
Photograph: Kevin Zhao/Reuters
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