Chinese Premier visits epicenter after deadly quake (3)

He ordered electricity suppliers to bring back power before 9 p.m. Saturday. He visited the Lushan Middle School, where many people had been relocated, after he learned that power supply had been restored in some temporary settlements and hospitals.

Li arrived at the disaster area on Saturday afternoon by helicopter shortly after he arrived at Qionglai airport in the southwestern province from Beijing.

When visiting the county hospital in Lushan, Li asked the patients injured in the quake about their feelings and the conditions of their family members, reassuring them that the Party and government will make the utmost effort to treat them.

After learning the medical staff's poor living conditions and the shortage of first aid materials, Li urged local government and relevant central departments to guarantee the logistics and the supply of medical resources.

Li later visited Shuangshi and Longmen, the two townships that were damaged the most in the quake. In spite of the danger of continuous aftershocks, Li mounted a heap of ruins and asked rescue workers whether there were still people buried in the ruins.

"The current priority is to save lives," said Li, "we should grasp the golden period for saving lives and waste no moment."

He urged rescue workers to search every corner of the ruins to ensure no life will be missed.

Villagers crowded around after knowing Li had come, telling the premier about the situation at the moment of the quake and the damages to their families. Li listened carefully, and comforted a senior village, saying that the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the government will help them to pass the difficult time.