Sichuan earthquake, 10 years on: a look at China's most shocking disaster of 2008

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YP ReporterKarly Cox
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  • Almost 90,000 were killed and hundreds of thousands injured in a natural disaster whose effects are still being felt
YP ReporterKarly Cox |
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Today marks the 10th anniversary of the massive earthquake in Sichuan province, which killed more than 87,000 people and injured more than 370,000. The May 12, 2008, quake was magnitude 8, and completely destroyed towns and villages across a 500,000 sq km disaster zone. Economic losses amounted to some 854 billion yuan.
 
While much of the region has been rebuilt in the decade since the quake, the city of Beichuan has been kept frozen in time. 
 
Here are some of the sights; the shot on the left was taken at some point after the earthquake, while the one on the right was taken at the end of last month.
A police car can be seen patrolling on May 27, 2008; the same scene on April 24, 2018.
A general view of the destruction after the quake.

Military personnel involved in search and rescue operation taking a break in Beichuan overlooking a bridge and the river; the same scene a decade on, with the bridge gone.

Quake survivors carrying their recovered belongings while walking on a road; men looking at same scene 10 years later.

A bird's eye view of the city
A helicopter hovering over the devastation on May 15, 2008; the same view on April 24, 2018.
Rescue workers crossing a dry riverbed a week after the quake, dwarfed by the destruction around them; the same view 10 years later. 

Greenery has replaced much of the rubble by the water.

All photos: AFP

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