2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Clay court season and French Open, Family Circle Cup
Williams began her clay preparations at Family Circle Cup. As the fifth seed, Williams received a bye in the first round. In the first round she won in straight sets against Frenchwoman Gisela Dulko. In the second round, she took on Katarina Srebotnik and came back winning in three after losing the first set. In the following round, Williams faced second seed Maria Sharapova, Williams won the first set in the twelfth game and then lost the second set with a single break advantage for the Russian. Williams then cruised in the third set dropping only a game.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Clay court season and French Open, Family Circle Cup
In the final 4, Williams defeated surprise semifinalist Alizé Cornet in straight sets. In the final, Williams faced Russian Vera Zvonareva. Williams took the first set when she broke Zvonareva in the first set and the held proceedings. Zvonareva then came back in the second when she broke in the sixth game with a Williams double fault, Zvonareva took advantage and won the second set to force a decider. In the final set, Williams was broken early, just to broken back. Williams then made the decisive break in the eight game and then serve it out to win her first Charleston title.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Clay court season and French Open, Qatar Telecom German Open
Her next scheduled event was the Qatar Telecom German Open. She received a bye to advance to the second round to face Francesca Schiavone, Williams cruised pass the Italian losing five games in the process. In the following round, she took on Agnieszka Radwańska and cruised, losing only four games. In the quarterfinals, she faced Russian Dinara Safina, Williams took the first set dropping only two games, Safina came back to take the second. The third set then went to decisive tie-break which Safina won. This loss ends Williams 17 match winning streak.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Clay court season and French Open, Internazionali BNL d'Italia
Williams made her final French Open preparation at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia. After receiving a bye in the first round, Williams won easily against Alona Bondarenko losing only two games, winning the second set in a bagel. In the next round, she faced Italian wildcard Sara Errani and won in straight sets with a break advantage in each. Williams was bound to face Alizé Cornet in the quarterfinal, when she withdrew before the match with a back injury.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Clay court season and French Open, French Open
Williams was the fifth-seeded player at the French Open. She was the only former winner of this tournament in this year's draw, following the sudden retirement of four-time champion Justine Henin. Williams began her campaign for a second French Open against compatriot Ashley Harkleroad, who she beat convincingly dropping only three games. In the second round, Williams defeated wild card Mathilde Johansson, cruising through the first set and was pushed to 1two games in the second set. In the round of 32, Williams took on Katarina Srebotnik. Williams was broken early just to break back to go back on serve. Srebotnik took advantage of the error-prone Williams to break and closed it out in the tenth game. In the second set, Williams had break points in three of Srebotnik's service games but failed to break. Srebotnik then won the second in the tenth game to produce the upset.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Wimbledon
Williams came into the Wimbledon Championships trying to win her third title in the event, having last won the title in 2003. She also was the sixth seed. In her opener she took on French Open quarterfinalist Kaia Kanepi, Kanepi had break points in the eleventh game, but Williams saved them and broke in the next game to take a set lead. Williams then took the second set, closing it out in the ninth game.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Wimbledon
In her next match, she faced Poland's Urszula Radwańska, Williams took an early two break lead, Radwańska was able to get one back, Williams hold on with the lead and closed the set in the tenth game. In the second set the pair broke each other early, but Williams took another break and sealed the win. In the third round, it was a battle of former no. 1's and former Wimbledon champions, when she took on Amélie Mauresmo. The first set the two went toe-to-toe as both struggled, but Williams outlasted Mauresmo in a tie-break.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Wimbledon
With Mauresmo struggling with her movement, Williams took advantage winning the second set with a breadstick scoreline. In the round of 16, Williams faced compatriot Bethanie Mattek-Sands, and won easily in straight winning both sets in three. In the final 8, Williams faced her second Radwańska opponent of the tournament in Agnieszka. Williams cruised, losing only four games, winning the second set with a bagel in just 51 minutes. She finished with 11 aces, including 4 in one game in the first set. In all, Williams finished with 27 winners and 6 unforced errors.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Wimbledon
In the last four, Williams took on surprise semifinalist Zheng Jie, Williams came through in straight with a drop of 8 games, edging Zheng in a second set tie-break. In the final, she faced sister Venus in their 7th slam final match, with Serena leading 5–1. Serena opened up the match breaking Venus, just to see Venus break back in the eight game and twelfth game to take the first set. They then traded breaks in the third and fourth game of the second. Venus then broke Serena in the tenth game to take the title. This was the first Grand Slam final in which the Williams sisters had played each other since 2003.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Wimbledon
In the doubles, she and sister Venus cruised through their first four matches with wins over the teams of Tatiana Poutchek and Anastasia Rodionova, Marta Domachowska and Agnieszka Radwańska, Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual, and Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sania Mirza, winning all matches in straight sets. In the semifinals, they defeated the France-Australia combination of Nathalie Dechy and Casey Dellacqua in straight sets, both in three. In the final, they faced the team of former no. 1 doubles players Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur, but cruised through their 6th slam title dropping only four games, 2 in each set. In the victory the pair did not drop a set all tournament long.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, Bank of the West Classic
Williams made her preparation for the Summer Olympics and US Open at the Bank of the West Classic. Williams received a bye in the first round and faced 15-year-old qualifier Michelle Larcher de Brito. Williams took an early break lead, until Larcher de Brito won six games in a row to take a set and the first two games of the second set. Williams then came back winning 12 of the last 1five games to go through. In the last 8, unlike her opening match, she cruised pass Patty Schnyder in straight sets with a drop of four games. In the semifinal, Williams retired against surprise semifinalist and qualifier Aleksandra Wozniak while trailing by a set and break due to a left knee injury.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, East West Bank Classic
Williams withdrew from the East West Bank Classic due to the same knee injury she retired from the previous tournament.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, Summer Olympics
Williams came into the Summer Olympics, trying to claim her first singles gold. In her opening match she took Belarus' Olga Govortsova and was a set and on serve in the third game when the match was suspended due to rain. In the resumption the next day Williams won the four games to take the in second set in a breadstick and win. In her next match, she faced Australia's Samantha Stosur and made quick work of her opponent winning in just 44 minutes and a loss of two games, winning the second set in a bagel.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, Summer Olympics
In her third round match, she was pushed by France's Alizé Cornet, Williams dropped the opening, but came back to win the next two, to advance. In the last 8, Williams took on Russia's Elena Dementieva, Williams took the first set in the ninth game. Dementieva then battled back to take the second in the tenth game. In the final set, the Russian raced through the first five games, winning them all, before Williams could racked in three herself. However, Dementieva was able to close it out in the ninth game.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, Summer Olympics
In the doubles, she and sister Venus Williams was one of the two teams player for the United States. It is their second Olympics as a team, having won in 2000 and missing the 2004 edition. In the first round they faced the Czech pairing of Iveta Benešová and Nicole Vaidišová, the Czech pair took the first set with a single break. The second set was tight but the Williams sisters were able to come through, breaking in the 11th game and holding serve to push it to a decider.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, Summer Olympics
The Williams sisters then dominated the last set with a breadstick. In their next two matches, they won in straight sets against the Japan's Ayumi Morita and Ai Sugiyama, and the Russian pairing of Elena Vesnina and Vera Zvonareva. In the semifinals they faced the Australian Open doubles champions Ukraine's Alona Bondarenko and Kateryna Bondarenko. The first set was won by the Bondarenko sisters with an advantage of a single break, the Williams sisters came back with the same scoreline in the second set and then dominated the third with a breadstick.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, Summer Olympics
In the battle for the Gold medal the faced Spanish French Open champions Anabel Medina Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual and cruised to their second gold medal with a drop of only two games including a bagel in the first set. This is their second doubles gold and stays undefeated at the Olympics as a pair


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, US Open
Williams came into the US Open as the world no. 3, and was one of seven contenders to claim the number 1 ranking. Williams was also trying the title for the first time in six years. Williams began her tournament against Ukraine's Kateryna Bondarenko and cruised in straight set. She recorded six aces and won 92 percent of the points on her first serve. Williams, in her second round match took on Russia's Elena Vesnina and won with a double breadstick victory.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, US Open
In the following round, she faced 30th seed Ai Sugiyama and cruised in a 66 minutes straight sets win. In the fourth round, Williams cruised pass French wild card Séverine Brémond in straight sets winning both sets in two. In the final 8, Williams took on sister Venus Williams in their 17th meeting. In the first set Venus had the advantage serving for the set at the tenth game, however younger sister Serena came back to push it to a tie-break.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, US Open
Venus then had two set points in the tie-break, but Serena reeled in four straight points to win the set. In the second set, once again Venus served for the set in the ninth game and had three set points, just to see Serena save them all and save another one at the twelfth game to push to another tie-break. Venus then had another three set points in the tie-break, just to see Serena win 6 of the last 7 points to win the match.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, US Open
In the semifinals, Williams faced French Open finalist Dinara Safina, Safina took an early lead winning the first two games, just to see Williams come back breaking her in the fourth and eight game and served the set out in the ninth game saving two break points. Williams then cruised in the second set winning it in two. In her first final since 2002, Williams took on Jelena Janković for the title and the number 1 ranking. In the first set, Williams took control with a single break lead.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Olympics and US Open Series, US Open
The second set was a turn-around, Janković had her chances she had three set points in the Williams serve in the ninth game and served for the set in the tenth game. However, Williams came back and broke Janković in the tenth and twelfth game to win her third US Open title and ninth slam without dropping a set. Williams finished with 44 winners, offsetting her 39 unforced errors, while Janković had 15 winners and 22 unforced errors. The win also gave Williams the number 1 ranking.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Indoors and year-end Championships, Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
Williams then played the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix as the world no. 1. After receiving a bye in the first round, she faced Li Na. Williams won the first set in a bagel, then lost the second set in a breadstick. The third set went to Li with a single break advantage. The loss meant that Williams will loss her number 1 ranking.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Indoors and year-end Championships, Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
In the doubles, she and sister Venus won in straight sets against Daniela Hantuchová and Ágnes Szávay before withdrawing in their match against Andrea Hlaváčková and Lucie Hradecká because of a left ankle injury to Serena


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Indoors and year-end Championships, Kremlin Cup
Williams then withdrew from the Kremlin Cup citing a continuing left ankle injury and a desire to give her body time to recover from a packed playing schedule.


2008 Serena Williams tennis season, Year in detail, Indoors and year-end Championships, WTA Tour Championships
Williams being the third seed was drawn with Dinara Safina, Elena Dementieva, and Venus Williams. Williams played Safina first and won comfortably in straight sets. In her second round robin match, she took on sister Venus, Serena took the first set in the twelfth game. However, from then on Serena only won a game losing the next to in a breadstick and a bagel. Handing the first bagel in the Williams sisters rivalry. Williams then pulled out with a stomach injury before her match against Dementieva and was replaced by Nadia Petrova.


2008 Setanta Sports Cup
The 2008 Setanta Sports Cup was the 4th staging of the cross-border cup competition featuring football clubs from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The final was played on November 1, 2008, at Turners Cross in Cork.


2008 Setanta Sports Cup, Group stage
Teams that progressed to the Semi-Finals are indicated in bold type.


2008 Setanta Sports Cup, Group stage
Teams eliminated from the Setanta Sports Cup this stage are indicated in italics.


2008 Setanta Sports Cup, Semi-finals
The draw for the semi-finals was made by drawing the winners of Group A against the runners-up of Group 2 and vice versa, with group winners having home advantage. Glentoran beat Drogheda United 1–0 in the first semi-final, which was played at United Park in Drogheda, while Cork City overcame Derry City by the same scoreline at the Brandywell Stadium in Derry.


2008 Setanta Sports Cup, Final
The final took place on November 1, 2008, at Turners Cross stadium in front of 5,500, a sell out crowd, in Cork, where Cork City came from behind to beat Glentoran 2-1 and win the competition for the first time.


2008 Shanghai International Film Festival
The 2008 Shanghai International Film Festival is the 11th such festival devoted to international cinema to be held in Shanghai, China. It was held from June 14–22, 2008. Hong Kong film director Wong Kar-wai was the head of jury at this year's film festival along with other jury members such as Chinese-American actress Joan Chen, legendary Danish director Bille August and Israeli stage actress Gila Almagor.


2008 Shanghai International Film Festival
The competition lineup included films from China, Europe, Japan, Argentina, South Korea, Lithuania, Russia, the Czech Republic and New Zealand. A total of 260 films were shown at this year's festival. Lithuanian film Loss was awarded two Golden Goblets - for best directing (Māris Martinsons) and best music (Andrius Mamontovas).


2008 Shanghai International Film Festival
The 11th Shanghai International Film Festival was searching for a new film director to be the head of the SIFF jury, after the sudden death of Anthony Minghella.


2008 Shanghai Masters
The 2008 Roewe Shanghai Masters was a professional ranking snooker tournament that took place between 29 September and 5 October 2008 at the Shanghai Grand Stage in Shanghai, China. It was the second ranking event of the 2008/2009 season and was the second annual edition of the tournament.


2008 Shanghai Masters
Former World Champion Graeme Dott withdrew from the competition after breaking his left arm on 30 September, during an informal football match with other snooker players. As a result, Jamie Cope, who was due to play Dott in the first round, received a bye to the last 16, where he made the 64th official maximum break against Mark Williams.


2008 Shanghai Masters
Qualifier Ricky Walden won in the final 10–8 against World Champion Ronnie O'Sullivan to win his first ranking title.


2008 Shanghai Masters, Prize fund
The breakdown of prize money for this year is shown below:


2008 Shanghai Masters, Qualifying rounds
These matches took place from 2 to 5 September 2008 at Pontins in Prestatyn, Wales.


2008 Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series
The Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series was an Australian touring car series held for V8 Supercars. It was the inaugural running of the V8 Touring Car National Series, a third-tier series for V8 Supercars. The season began on 17 May 2008 at the Mallala Motor Sport Park and finished on 30 November at Sandown Raceway. The season consisted of four rounds, held across three different states.


2008 Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series
The series was won by Chris Smerdon who was the only driver to finish all twelve races, but also won eight races. He finished 130 points ahead of Steve Ingwersen who was the only other driver to attend all four rounds.


2008 Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series, Teams and drivers
The following teams and drivers have competed during the 2008 Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series.


2008 Shannons V8 Touring Car National Series, Results and standings
The season consisted of four rounds held across three different states. Each round consisted of three races.


2008 Shanxi mudslide
The 2008 Shanxi mudslide was caused by the collapse of an unlicensed mine landfill in Xiangfen county, Linfen, Shanxi Province, People's Republic of China which caused 277 dead, 4 missing and 33 injured. Around 8:00 a.m. on September 8, 2008, the retaining wall of a waste iron ore reservoir collapsed after torrential rain, causing a major mudslide which inundated a village and crowded marketplace. The unlicensed Tashan Mine was operated by the Tashan Mining Company.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, History
The ore reservoir was built in the 1980s, halfway up a mountain, about 50 meters above an office building, marketplace and some residences. It was built only 100 meters away from the nearest residence. The reservoir was supposedly decommissioned a few years later, but its new owner, Zhang Peiliang, put it back into use when he took over the company in 2005. In 2006, the Tashan Mining Company did not renew its safety production license, and in 2007, the mining license of Zhang also expired.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Damages and casualties
The entire village of Yunhe was inundated by the mudslide, including an outdoor market crowded with customers. As of September 24, the Chinese state media reported that the death toll was 267, and the number of injuries 34. Only 128 bodies, mostly of locals, have been identified. Some 268,000 cubic meters of mudslide sludge flooded over an area of 30.2 hectares in the disaster, and the mud was up to six meters deep in some parts.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Damages and casualties
The final official count is: 277 dead, 4 missing and 33 injured.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Damages and casualties
A worker had said "It's not because of the rain. It wasn't a natural disaster, it was man-made." Up to 500 people may still be buried, according to the Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Rescue efforts
5,300 police and rescuers, using more than 110 excavators, were looking for survivors. The rescuers covered about 90% of the mudslide zone so far. In addition, 2,100 medical workers were at the site to provide medical care.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Aftermath
1,047 people are displaced because of the mudslide. The provincial level government says relatives of the dead will receive 200,000 yuan (US$ 29,215). The Communist Party chief, the head of Taosi township, work safety bureau director, and chief engineer in Xiangfen county were dismissed for neglect of duty. Thirteen mine executives, including Zhang Peiliang, were detained by Chinese authorities, and four other local officials were also dismissed. The State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS) said that an investigation is pending, and that the people responsible will be "punished in line with the relevant laws."


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Aftermath
Wang Jun, the director of SAWS said, "It is the most grave accident that involves the largest death toll so far this year. The rising accidents disclose local governments' poor supervision on work safety. Those responsible must be dealt with seriously." Meng Xuenong, Governor of Shanxi, resigned a day after the event, on September 14. Wang Jun was subsequently transferred to become Governor of Shanxi.


2008 Shanxi mudslide, Aftermath
In September 2010, 58 people, including 34 former government officials, were handed out sentences in relation to the collapse.


2008 Sharpie 500
The 2008 Sharpie 500 was the twenty-fourth race of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season and was raced on Saturday night, August 23 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee. The event has been considered one of the toughest tickets in all of sports, tougher than the Super Bowl or the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics, and is annually a sellout, of which this was the 53rd in a row for NSCS racing at the .533 miles (0.858 km) track. ESPN telecast the race beginning at 7 pm US EDT and Performance Racing Network along with Sirius Satellite Radio had radio coverage starting at that same time.


2008 Sharpie 500, Qualifying
Failed to qualify: Jeff Green (#34), Johnny Sauter (#70), Patrick Carpentier (#10)


2008 Sharpie 500, Race recap
Since the addition of the Car of Tomorrow and the repaving of the track, many fans thought that the old days of Bristol were over. These thoughts however were blown away in the closing laps of the race when Carl Edwards used the "Bump and Run" technique to get past Kyle Busch for the win, causing a post race confrontation where Busch rammed into the side of Edwards car during the cool down lap. Edwards responded by spinning Busch out as Busch turned to enter pit road.


2008 Sharpie 500, Race recap
Busch used the same technique to take the lead from Carl Edwards on lap 55. Kyle Busch was called to the NASCAR Hauler after his post-race interview for the incident, and on August 27, both Edwards and Kyle Busch were put on probation for the next six Sprint Cup Races. The race was also red-flagged at Lap 210 after an accident commonly called "The Big One" saw nine cars - including Chase contender Kasey Kahne - pile up in Turn 2.


2008 Sharpie 500, Race recap
There were only three lap leaders the entire race. Edwards and Busch led 499 laps combined, while Jeff Gordon led a lap.


2008 Sheffield City Council election
Sheffield City Council elections took place on Thursday 1 May 2008. There were 30 seats up for election - one of the three councillors from each ward, plus two seats from Labour councillors who had stepped down. Liberal Democrats made several gains, regaining control of the council for the first time since losing it in 2002. The overall turnout for this election was 36.8%.


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by Jevansen (talk | contribs) at 23:38, 28 November 2019 (removed Category:2008 ATP Tour using HotCat). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open
The 2008 Shelbourne Irish Open was a men's tennis tournament played on outdoor carpet courts. It was the 3rd and final edition of the event, and part of the 2008 ATP Challenger Series of the 2008 ATP Tour. It took place at the tennis courts at the Fitzwilliam Lawn Tennis Club in Dublin, Ireland, from 30 June through 5 July 2008.


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open, Singles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following players received wildcards into the singles main draw:


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open, Doubles main draw entrants, Other entrants
The following pairs received wildcards into the doubles main draw:


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open – Doubles
Rohan Bopanna and Adam Feeney were the defending champions but Bopanna chose not to compete this year. Feeney instead partnered Andrew Coelho and lost in the quarterfinals to Prakash Amritraj and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi.


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open – Doubles
Amritraj and Qureshi went on to win the title, defeating Jonathan Marray and Frederik Nielsen in the final, 6–3, 7–6(8–6).


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open – Singles
Rohan Bopanna was the defending champion but chose not to compete this year.


2008 Shelbourne Irish Open – Singles
Robert Smeets won the title, defeating Frederik Nielsen in the final, 7–6(7–5), 6–2.


2008 Shenzhen anti-police riot
The Shenzhen anti-police riot began in Shenzhen, People's Republic of China November 7, 2008 when a policeman threw a walkie talkie at a speeding motorcyclist causing the driver to lose control of his bike. The driver then crashed into a lamp post and died a few hours later. The biker's relatives began gathering people starting a riot against the local police station that grew to involve hundreds of people and thousands of bystanders.


2008 Shenzhen anti-police riot, Further reading
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2008 Shimizu S-Pulse season
The 2008 S-Pulse season was S-Pulse's seventeenth season in existence and their sixteenth season in the J1 League. The club also competed in the Emperor's Cup and the J.League Cup. The team finished the season fifth in the league.


2008 Shiraz explosion
The 2008 Shiraz bombing was an April 12, 2008 explosion that occurred during prayers at the Hosseynieh Seyed al-Shohada Mosque in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz. Fourteen people were killed and 202 were injured.


2008 Shiraz explosion, Event
According to Aljazeera, reports showed that  the explosion occurred in the side that males were praying. Around 800 people, which were mostly youth, were gathered at the Mosque to hear sermons which usually include sermons attacking the Wahabi denomination of Sunni Islam and the Baháʼí Faith. According to the BBC, the explosion shattered windows of several houses that were close to the mosque, as reported by Iran News Agency.


2008 Shiraz explosion, Event
The deputy governor of the province, Mohammad Reza Hadaegh, told IRIB an investigation was under way. Iranian officials first stated that the blast was not a terrorist attack, but caused by leftover munitions that were on display in the mosque as part of an exhibition commemorating Iran's 1980–1988 war against Iraq. However, in May, Interior Minister Mostafa Pour-Mohammadi said the blast was an act of terrorism and 12 terrorists had been arrested before attacking the Russian Consulate and religious centers in Qom. Intelligence Minister Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejehei accused United States and Britain of involvement in the bombing and attempted to press charges against the two countries.


2008 Shiraz explosion, Event
An Iranian monarchist group calling itself the Soldiers of the Kingdom Assembly of Iran,(Anjoman-e Padeshahi-e Iran), claimed responsibility for the bombing.


2008 Shiraz explosion, Event
In November 2008, Iran sentenced three men to death after they were convicted of the bombing. One of these men, Mehdi Eslamian, was hanged with four others on May 9, 2010. His brother had previously been hanged for the bombing.


2008 Sichuan earthquake
The 2008 Sichuan earthquake (Chinese: 汶川大地震; pinyin: Wènchuān dà dìzhèn; lit. ' Great Wenchuan earthquake'), also known as the Great Sichuan earthquake or Wenchuan earthquake, occurred at 14:28:01 China Standard Time on May 12, 2008. Measuring at 8.0 Ms (7.9 Mw), the earthquake's epicenter was located 80 kilometres (50 mi) west-northwest of Chengdu, the provincial capital, with a focal depth of 19 km (12 mi). The earthquake ruptured the fault for over 240 km (150 mi), with surface displacements of several meters.


2008 Sichuan earthquake
The earthquake was also felt in nearby countries and as far away as both Beijing and Shanghai—1,500 and 1,700 km (930 and 1,060 mi) away, respectively—where office buildings swayed with the tremor. Strong aftershocks, some exceeding 6 Ms, continued to hit the area up to several months after the main shock, causing further casualties and damage. The earthquake also caused the largest number of geohazards ever recorded, including about 200,000 landslides and more than 800 quake lakes distributed over an area of 110,000 km2 (42,000 sq mi).


2008 Sichuan earthquake
Over 69,000 people lost their lives in the quake, including 68,636 in Sichuan province. 374,176 were reported injured, with 18,222 listed as missing as of July 2008. The geohazards triggered by the earthquake are thought to be responsible for at least one third of the death toll. The earthquake left at least 4.8 million people homeless, though the number could be as high as 11 million. Approximately 15 million people lived in the affected area.


2008 Sichuan earthquake
It was the deadliest earthquake to hit China since the 1976 Tangshan earthquake, which killed at least 242,000 people, and the strongest in the country since the 1950 Assam–Tibet earthquake, which registered at 8.6 on the Moment magnitude scale. It is the 18th deadliest earthquake of all time. On November 6, 2008, the central government announced that it would spend 1 trillion RMB (about US$146.5 billion) over the next three years to rebuild areas ravaged by the earthquake, as part of the Chinese economic stimulus program.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology
According to a study by the China Earthquake Administration (CEA), the earthquake occurred along the Longmenshan Fault, a thrust structure along the border of the Indo-Australian Plate and Eurasian Plate. Seismic activities concentrated on its mid-fracture (known as Yingxiu-Beichuan fracture). The rupture lasted close to 120 seconds, with the majority of energy released in the first 80 seconds. Starting from Wenchuan, the rupture propagated at an average speed of 3.1 km/s (6,900 mph), 49° toward north east, rupturing a total of about 300 km (190 mi). Maximum displacement amounted to nine metres (30 ft). The focus was deeper than 10 km (6.2 mi).


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology
In a United States Geological Survey (USGS) study, preliminary rupture models of the earthquake indicated displacement of up to nine metres (30 ft) along a fault approximately 240 km (150 mi) long by 20 km (12 mi) deep. The earthquake generated deformations of the surface greater than three metres (9.8 ft) and increased the stress (and probability of occurrence of future events) at the northeastern and southwestern ends of the fault. On May 20, USGS seismologist Tom Parsons warned that there is "high risk" of a major M>7 aftershock over the next couple weeks or months.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology
Japanese seismologist Yuji Yagi at the University of Tsukuba said that the earthquake occurred in more than 1 stage: "The 250-kilometre (155 mi) Longmenshan Fault tore in two sections, the first one ripping about 6.5 metres (7 yd) followed by a second one that sheared 3.5 metres (4 yd)." His data also showed that the earthquake lasted about two minutes and released 30 times the energy of the Great Hanshin earthquake of 1995 in Japan, which killed over 6,000 people.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology
He pointed out that the shallowness of the epicenter and the density of population greatly increased the severity of the earthquake. Teruyuki Kato, a seismologist at the University of Tokyo, said that the seismic waves of the quake traveled a long distance without losing their power because of the firmness of the terrain in central China. According to reports from Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province, the earthquake tremors lasted for "about two or three minutes".


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
The extent of the earthquake and after shock-affected areas lying north-east, along the Longmen Shan fault.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
The Longmen Shan Fault System is situated in the eastern border of the Tibetan Plateau and contains several faults. This earthquake ruptured at least two imbricate structures in Longmen Shan Fault System, i.e. the Beichuan Fault and the Guanxian–Anxian Fault. In the epicentral area, the average slip in Beichuan Fault was about 3.5 metres (11 ft) vertical, 3.5 metres (11 ft) horizontal-parallel to the fault, and 4.8 metres (16 ft) horizontal-perpendicular to the fault. In the area about 30 kilometres (19 mi) northeast of the epicenter, the surface slip on Beichuan Fault was almost purely dextral strike-slip up to about three metres (9.8 ft), while the average slip in Guanxian–Anxian Fault was about two metres (6.6 ft) vertical and 2.3 metres (7.5 ft) horizontal.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
"The energy source of the Wenchuan earthquake and Longmenshan's southeast push came from the strike of the Indian Plate onto the Eurasian Plate and its northward push. The inter-plate relative motion caused large scale structural deformation inside the Asian continent, resulting in a thinning crust of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the uplift of its landscape and an eastward extrude. Near the Sichuan Basin, Qinghai-Tibet Plateau's east-northward movement meets with strong resistance from the South China Block, causing a high degree of stress accumulation in the Longmenshan thrust formation. This finally caused a sudden dislocation in the Yingxiu-Beichuan fracture, leading to the violent earthquake of Ms 8.0."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
The earthquake occurred as the result of motion on a northeast striking reverse fault or thrust fault on the northwestern margin of the Sichuan Basin. The earthquake's epicenter and focal-mechanism are consistent with it having occurred as the result of movement on the Longmenshan Fault or a tectonically related fault. The earthquake reflects tectonic stresses resulting from the convergence of crustal material slowly moving from the high Tibetan Plateau, to the west, against strong crust underlying the Sichuan Basin and southeastern China.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
On a continental scale, the seismicity of central and eastern Asia is a result of northward convergence of the Indian Plate against the Eurasian Plate with a velocity of about 50 mm/a [2.0 in/year]. The convergence of the two plates is broadly accommodated by the uplift of the Asian highlands and by the motion of crustal material to the east away from the uplifted Tibetan Plateau. The northwestern margin of the Sichuan Basin has previously experienced destructive earthquakes. The magnitude 7.5 earthquake of August 25, 1933, killed more than 9,300 people.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
The earthquake occurred 92 km [57 mi] northwest of the city of Chengdu in eastern Sichuan province and over 1,500 km [930 mi] from Beijing, where it was also strongly felt. Earthquakes of this size have the potential to cause extensive damage and loss of life.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
The epicenter was in the mountains of the Eastern Margin of Qing-Tibet Plateau at the northwest margin of the Sichuan Basin. The earthquake occurred as a result of motion on a northeast striking thrust fault that runs along the margin of the basin.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Tectonics
The seismicity of central and eastern Asia is caused by the northward movement of the India plate at a rate of 5 cm/year [2.0 in/year] and its collision with Eurasia, resulting in the uplift of the Himalaya and Tibetan plateaux and associated earthquake activity. This deformation also results in the extrusion of crustal material from the high Tibetan Plateaux in the west towards the Sichuan Basin and southeastern China. China frequently suffers large and deadly earthquakes. In August 1933, the magnitude 7.5 Diexi earthquake, about 90 km [56 mi] northeast of today's earthquake, destroyed the town of Diexi and surrounding villages, and caused many landslides, some of which dammed the rivers.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Intensities and damage area
The map of earthquake intensity published by CEA after surveying 500,000 km2 (190,000 sq mi) of the affected area shows a maximum liedu of XI on the China Seismic Intensity Scale (CSIS), described as "very destructive" on the European Macroseismic Scale (EMS) from which CSIS drew reference. (USGS, using the Modified Mercalli intensity scale (CC), also placed maximum intensity at XI, "extreme".)


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Intensities and damage area
Two south-west-north-east stripes of liedu XI are centered around Yingxiu, Wenchuan (the town closest to the epicenter of the main quake) and Beichuan (the town repeatedly struck by strong aftershocks including one registering Ms 6.1 on August 1, 2008), both in Sichuan Province, occupying a total of 2,419 km2 (934 sq mi). The Yingxiu liedu-XI zone is about 66 km (41 mi) long and 20 km (12 mi) wide along Wenchuan–Dujiangyan–Pengzhou; the Beichuan liedu-XI zone is about 82 km (51 mi) long and 15 km (9.3 mi) wide along An County–Beichuan–Pingwu.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Intensities and damage area
The area with liedu X (comparable to X on EMS, "destructive" and X on MM, "disastrous") spans 3,144 km2 (1,214 sq mi). The area affected by earthquakes exceeding liedu VI totals 440,442 km2 (170,056 sq mi), occupying an oval 936 km (582 mi) long and 596 km (370 mi) wide, spanning three provinces and one autonomous region.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Intensities and damage area
QLARM (Quake Loss Alarms for Response and Mitigation) issues near-real-time estimates of fatalities and number of injured for earthquakes worldwide. Recent alerts can be found on the web page of the International Institute for Earth Simulation Foundation. Such an alert was issued 21 minutes after the May 12 Wenchuan earthquake of 2008. It had at first been assigned M7.5, internationally. This initial underestimate of the magnitude is a known problem with earthquakes of M8 and larger. Based on the M7.5 information, QLARM distributed an email to about 300 recipients estimating that 1,000 to 4,000 fatalities had occurred. After learning that the earthquake may measure M8, QLARM distributed a revised estimate of 40,000 to 100,000 fatalities. This information was distributed within 100 minutes of the Wenchuan earthquake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Intensities and damage area
The news and official reports of fatalities are often strongly misleading. After the Wenchuan earthquake, officials led the public to believe for more than a week that the fatalities numbered only a fraction of what they really were (Figure 1). At the very beginning, everyone expects the news reports to be an initial count that will grow, not however, after one week. After such a long time, the false news reports take on a reality in their own right and the theoretical loss calculations by experts are discarded.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Intensities and damage area
Once the extent of the rupture of the Wenchuan earthquake became known, QLARM calculated a more detail picture of the losses. Figure 2 shows a map of the expected mean damage of the settlements affected by the Wenchuan earthquake on a scale of 5. The resistance to shaking of buildings in large cities is assumed to be stronger than in villages, therefore the damage and percentage of fatalities in large cities is less than in villages.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Aftershocks
Between 64 and 104 major aftershocks, ranging in magnitude from 4.0 to 6.1, were recorded within 72 hours of the main quake. According to Chinese official counts, "by 12:00 CST, November 6, 2008, there had been 42,719 total aftershocks, of which 246 ranged from 4.0 MS to 4.9 MS, 34 from 5.0 MS to 5.9 MS, and 8 from 6.0 Ms to 6.4 MS; the strongest aftershock measured 6.4 MS." The latest aftershock exceeding M6 occurred on August 5, 2008.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Geology, Aftershocks
(The Ms  6.1 earthquake on August 30, 2008, in southern Sichuan was not part of this series because it was caused by a different fault. See 2008 Panzhihua earthquake for details.)


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties
The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.0 Ms and 7.9 Mw. The epicenter was in Wenchuan County, Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, 80 km (50 mi) west/northwest of the provincial capital of Chengdu, with its main tremor occurring at 14:28:01.42 China Standard Time (06:28:01.42 UTC), on May 12, 2008, lasting for around two minutes; in the quake almost 80% of buildings were destroyed.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Extent of the tremors
Places ordered by distance from epicenter (or time of propagation):


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
Office buildings in Shanghai's financial district, including the Jin Mao Tower and the Hong Kong New World Tower, were evacuated. A receptionist at the Tibet Hotel in Chengdu said things were "calm" after the hotel evacuated its guests. Meanwhile, workers at a Ford plant in Sichuan were evacuated for about 10 minutes. Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport was shut down, and the control tower and regional radar control evacuated. One SilkAir flight was diverted and landed in Kunming as a result. Cathay Pacific delayed both legs of its quadruple daily Hong Kong to London route due to this disruption in air traffic services. Chengdu Shuangliu Airport reopened later on the evening of May 12, offering limited service as the airport began to be used as a staging area for relief operations.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
Reporters in Chengdu said they saw cracks on walls of some residential buildings in the downtown areas, but no buildings collapsed. Many Beijing office towers were evacuated, including the building housing the media offices for the organizers of the 2008 Summer Olympics. None of the Olympic venues were damaged. Meanwhile, a cargo train carrying 13 petrol tanks derailed in Hui County, Gansu, and caught on fire after the rail was distorted.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
All of the highways into Wenchuan, and others throughout the province, were damaged, resulting in delayed arrival of the rescue troops. In Beichuan County, 80% of the buildings collapsed according to Xinhua News. In the city of Shifang, the collapse of two chemical plants led to leakage of some 80 tons of liquid ammonia, with hundreds of people reported buried. In the city of Dujiangyan, south-east of the epicenter, a whole school collapsed with 900 students buried and fewer than 60 survived. The Juyuan Middle School, where many teenagers were buried, was excavated by civilians and cranes. Dujiangyan is home of the Dujiangyan Irrigation System, an ancient water diversion project which is still in use and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The project's famous Fish Mouth was cracked but not severely damaged otherwise.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
Both the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange suspended trading of companies based in southwestern China. Copper rose over speculations that production in southwestern China may be affected, and oil prices dropped over speculations that demand from China would fall.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
Immediately after the earthquake event, mobile and terrestrial telecommunications were cut to the affected and surrounding area, with all internet capabilities cut to the Sichuan area too. Elements of telecommunications were restored by the government piece by piece over the next number of months as the situation in the Sichuan province gradually improved. Eventually, a handful of major news and media websites were made accessible online in the region, albeit with dramatically pared back webpages.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
China Mobile had more than 2,300 base stations suspended due to power disruption or severe telecommunication traffic congestion. Half of the wireless communications were lost in the Sichuan province. China Unicom's service in Wenchuan and four nearby counties was cut off, with more than 700 towers suspended.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
Initially, officials were unable to contact the Wolong National Nature Reserve, home to around 280 giant pandas. However, the Foreign Ministry later said that a group of 31 British tourists visiting the Wolong Panda Reserve in the quake-hit area returned safe and uninjured to Chengdu. Nonetheless, the well-being of an even greater number of pandas in the neighbouring panda reserves remained unknown. Five security guards at the reserve were killed by the earthquake. Six pandas escaped after their enclosures were damaged.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
By May 20, two pandas at the reserve were found to be injured, while the search continued for another two adult pandas that went missing after the quake. By May 28, 2008, one panda was still missing. The missing panda was later found dead under the rubble of an enclosure. Nine-year-old Mao Mao, a mother of five at the breeding center, was discovered on Monday, her body crushed by a wall in her enclosure. Panda keepers and other workers placed her remains in a small wooden crate and buried her outside the breeding centre.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Immediate aftermath
The Zipingpu Hydropower Plant located 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of the epicenter was damaged. A recent inspection indicated that the damage was less severe than initially feared, and it remains structurally stable and safe. However, the Tulong reservoir upstream is in danger of collapse. About 2,000 troops have been allocated to Zipingpu, trying to release the pressure through spillway. In total, 391 dams, most of them small, were reported damaged by the quake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
According to Chinese state officials, the quake caused 69,180 known deaths including 68,636 in Sichuan province; 18,498 people are listed as missing, and 374,176 injured. This estimate includes 158 earthquake relief workers who were killed in landslides as they tried to repair roads.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
One rescue team reported only 2,300 survivors from the town of Yingxiu in Wenchuan County, out of a total population of about 9,000. 3,000 to 5,000 people were killed in Beichuan County, Sichuan alone; in the same location, 10,000 people were injured and 80% of the buildings were destroyed. The old county seat of Beichuan was abandoned and preserved as part of the Beichuan Earthquake Museum. Eight schools were toppled in Dujiangyan.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
A 56-year-old was killed in Dujiangyan during a rescue attempt on the Lingyanshan Ropeway, where due to the earthquake 11 tourists from Taiwan had been trapped inside cable cars since May 13. A 4-year-old boy named Zhu Shaowei (Chinese: 朱绍维) was also killed in Mianzhu when a house collapsed on him and another was reported missing.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
Experts point out that the earthquake hit an area that has been largely neglected and untouched by China's economic rise. Health care is poor in inland areas such as Sichuan, highlighting the widening gap between prosperous urban dwellers and struggling rural people. Vice Minister of Health Gao Qiang told reporters in Beijing that the "public health care system in China is insufficient." The Vice Minister of Health also suggested that the government would pick up the costs of care to earthquake victims, many of whom have little or no insurance: "The government should be responsible for providing medical treatment to them," he said.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
In terms of school casualties, thousands of school children died due to shoddy construction. In Mianyang City, seven schools collapsed, burying at least 1,700 people. At least 7,000 school buildings throughout the province collapsed. Another 700 students were buried in a school in Hanwang. At least 600 students and staff died at Juyuan Elementary School. Up to 1,300 children and teachers died at Beichuan Middle School. According to Tan Zuoren, 5,600 pupils were dead or missing from the 64 schools Tan investigated in the quake zone. Tan was  detained after he published such a casualties number.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
Tang Xuemei was in a school dormitory building during the earthquake. She was trapped for 28 hours before being rescued. Her left leg had to be amputated. She became a Paralympic sitting volleyball player and became Paralympic champion in 2012 winning the silver medal at the 2020 Summer Paralympics.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
Details of school casualties had been under non-governmental investigation since December 2008 by volunteers including artist and architect Ai Weiwei, who had been constantly posting updates on his blog since March 2009. The official tally of students killed in the earthquake was not released until May 7, 2009, almost a year after the earthquake. According to the state-run Xinhua news agency, the earthquake killed 5,335 students and left another 546 children disabled. Some parents believe the real figure is twice that officially cited. The executive vice governor of Sichuan Wei Hong said the student death toll is 19,065.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Casualties
Mr. Wei noted the toll was incomplete as the officials were still tallying the final number. In the aftermath of the earthquake, the Chinese government declared that parents who had lost their only children would get free treatment from fertility clinics to reverse vasectomies and tubal ligations conducted by family planning authorities.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Property damage
The earthquake left at least 5 million people without housing, although the number could be as high as 11 million. Millions of livestock and a significant amount of agriculture were also destroyed, including 12.5 million animals, mainly birds. In the Sichuan province a million pigs died out of 60 million total. Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide reported official estimates of insurers' losses at US$1 billion from the earthquake; estimated total damage exceeded US$20 billion. It values Chengdu, at the time having an urban population of 4.5 million people, at around US$115 billion, with only a small portion covered by insurance.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Property damage
Reginald DesRoches, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Georgia Tech, pointed out that the massive damage of properties and houses in the earthquake area was because China did not create an adequate seismic design code until after the devastating 1976 Tangshan earthquake. DesRoches said: "If the buildings were older and built prior to that 1976 earthquake, chances are they weren't built for adequate earthquake forces."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Property damage
In the days following the disaster, an international reconnaissance team of engineers was dispatched to the region to make a detailed preliminary survey of damaged buildings. Their findings show a variety of reasons why many constructions failed to withstand the earthquake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Property damage
News reports indicate that the poorer, rural villages were hardest hit. Swaminathan Krishnan, assistant professor of civil engineering and geophysics at the California Institute of Technology said: "the earthquake occurred in the rural part of China. Presumably, many of the buildings were just built; they were not designed, so to speak." Swaminathan Krishnan further added: "There are very strong building codes in China, which take care of earthquake issues and seismic design issues. But many of these buildings presumably were quite old and probably were not built with any regulations overseeing them."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Later casualties
Strong aftershocks continued to strike even months after the main quake. On May 25, an aftershock of 6.0 Mw (6.4 Ms according to CEA) hit northeast of the original earthquake's epicenter, in Qingchuan County, Sichuan, causing eight deaths, 1,000 injuries, and destroying thousands of buildings. On May 27, two aftershocks, one 5.2 Mw in Qingchuan County and one 5.7 Mw in Ningqiang County, Shaanxi, led to the collapse of more than 420,000 homes and injured 63 people.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Later casualties
The same area suffered two more aftershocks of 5.6 and 6.0 Ms  (5.8 and 5.5 Mw , respectively, according to USGS) on July 23, resulting in 1 death, 6 serious injuries, the collapse of hundreds of homes and damaging kilometers of highways.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Later casualties
Pingwu County and Beichuan County, Sichuan, also northeast of Wenchuan and close to the epicenter of a 7.2 Ms earthquake in 1976, suffered a 6.1 Ms  aftershock (5.7 Mw  according to USGS) on August 1; it caused 2 deaths, 345 injuries, the collapse of 707 homes, damage to over 1,000 homes, and blocked 25 kilometres (16 mi) of country roads. As late as August 5, yet another aftershock of 6.1 Ms (6.2 Mw according to USGS) hit Qingchuan, Sichuan, causing 1 death, 32 injuries, telecommunication interruptions, and widespread hill slides blocking roads in the area including a national highway.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Damage and casualties, Later casualties, Government data
Executive vice governor Wei Hong confirmed on November 21, 2008, that more than 90,000 people in total were dead or missing in the earthquake. He stated that 200,000 homes had been rebuilt, and 685,000 were under reconstruction, but 1.94 million households were still without permanent shelter. 1,300 schools had been reconstructed, with initial relocation of 25 townships, including Beichuan and Wenchuan, two of the most devastated areas. The government spent $441 billion on relief and reconstruction efforts.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
General Secretary and President Hu Jintao announced that the disaster response would be rapid. Just 90 minutes after the earthquake, Premier Wen Jiabao, who has an academic background in geomechanics, flew to the earthquake area to oversee the rescue work. Soon afterward, the Ministry of Health stated that it had sent ten emergency medical teams to Wenchuan County. On the same day, the Chengdu Military Region Command dispatched 50,000 troops and armed police to help with disaster relief work in Wenchuan County.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
However, due to the rough terrain and close proximity of the quake's epicenter, the soldiers found it very difficult to get help to the rural regions of the province. Premier Wen ordered the People's Liberation Army by saying, "It is the people who have raised you. It's up to you to see what to do! Even if it means walking on foot, you must nonetheless walk in there anyways. (Chinese:是人民养育了你们, 你们自己看着办! 你们就是靠双腿走, 也要给我走进去)" However, PLA commander Guo Boxiong only listened to Jiang Zemin's order, neither Wen Jiabao's or Hu Jintao's. The first 72 critical rescue hours were wasted. The New York Times reported "the troops were unprepared to save lives in the first 72 hours, when thousands were buried under toppled masonry and every minute mattered."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
The National Disaster Relief Commission initiated a "Level II emergency contingency plan", which covers the most serious class of natural disasters. The plan rose to Level I at 22:15 CST, May 12.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
An earthquake emergency relief team of 184 people (consisting of 12 people from the State Seismological Bureau, 150 from the Beijing Military Area Command, and 22 from the Armed Police General Hospital) left Beijing from Nanyuan Airport late May 12 in two military transport planes to travel to Wenchuan County.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Many rescue teams, including that of the Taipei Fire Department from Taiwan, were reported ready to join the rescue effort in Sichuan as early as Wednesday. However, the Red Cross Society of China said that (on May 13) "it was inconvenient currently due to the traffic problem to the hardest hit areas closest to the epicenter."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
The Red Cross Society of China also stated that the disaster areas need tents, medical supplies, drinking water and food; however it recommended donating cash instead of other items, as it had not been possible to reach roads that were completely damaged or places that were blocked off by landslides.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Landslides continuously threatened the progress of a search and rescue group of 80 men, each carrying about 40 kg of relief supplies, from a motorized infantry brigade under commander Yang Wenyao, as they tried to reach the ethnically Tibetan village of Sier at a height of 4000 m above sea level in Pingwu county. The extreme terrain conditions precluded the use of helicopter evacuation, and over 300 of the Tibetan villagers were stranded in their demolished village for five days without food and water before the rescue group finally arrived to help the injured and stranded villagers down the mountain.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Persistent heavy rain and landslides in Wenchuan County and the nearby area badly affected rescue efforts. At the start of rescue operations on May 12, 20 helicopters were deployed for the delivery of food, water, and emergency aid, and also the evacuation of the injured and reconnaissance of quake-stricken areas. By 17:37 CST on May 13, a total of over 15,600 troops and militia reservists from the Chengdu Military Region had joined the rescue force in the heavily affected areas.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
A commander reported from Yingxiu Town, Wenchuan, that around 3,000 survivors were found, while the status of the other inhabitants (around 9,000) remained unclear. The 1,300 rescuers reached the epicenter, and 300 pioneer troops reached the seat of Wenchuan at about 23:30 CST. By 12:17 CST, May 14, 2008, communication in the seat of Wenchuan was partly revived. On the afternoon of May 14, 15 Special Operations Troops, along with relief supplies and communications gear, parachuted into inaccessible Mao County, northeast of Wenchuan.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
By May 15, Premier Wen Jiabao ordered the deployment of an additional 90 helicopters, of which 60 were to be provided by the PLAAF, and 30 were to be provided by the civil aviation industry, bringing the total number of aircraft deployed in relief operations by the air force, army, and civil aviation to over 150, resulting in the largest non-combat airlifting operation in People's Liberation Army history.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Beijing accepted the aid of the Tzu Chi Foundation from Taiwan late on May 13. Tzu Chi was the first force from outside the People's Republic of China to join the rescue effort. China stated it would gratefully accept international help to cope with the quake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
A direct chartered cargo flight was made by China Airlines from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport sending some 100 tons of relief supplies donated by the Tzu Chi Foundation and the Red Cross Society of Taiwan to the affected areas. Approval from mainland Chinese authorities was sought, and the chartered flight departed Taipei at 17:00 CST, May 15 and arrived in Chengdu by 20:30 CST. A rescue team from the Red Cross in Taiwan was also scheduled to depart Taipei on a Mandarin Airlines direct chartered flight to Chengdu at 15:00 CST on May 16.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Francis Marcus of the International Federation of the Red Cross praised the Chinese rescue effort as "swift and very efficient" in Beijing on Tuesday. But he added the scale of the disaster was such that "we can't expect that the government can do everything and handle every aspect of the needs". The Economist noted that China reacted to the disaster "rapidly and with uncharacteristic openness", contrasting it with Burma's secretive response to Cyclone Nargis, which devastated that country 10 days before the earthquake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
On May 16, rescue groups from South Korea, Japan, Singapore, Russia and Taiwan arrived to join the rescue effort. The United States shared some of its satellite images of the quake-stricken areas with Chinese authorities. During the weekend, the US sent into China two U.S. Air Force C-17's carrying supplies, which included tents and generators. Xinhua had reported a total of more than 100,000 Chinese troops, medics, and volunteers from other provinces that were involved in the rescue effort across 58 counties and cities in Sichuan.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
The Internet was extensively used for passing information to aid rescue and recovery efforts. For example, the official news agency Xinhua set up an online rescue request center in order to find the blind spots of disaster recovery. After knowing that rescue helicopters had trouble landing into the epicenter area in Wenchuan, a student proposed a landing spot online and it was chosen as the first touchdown place for the helicopters. Volunteers also set up several websites to help store contact information for victims and evacuees. On May 31, a rescue helicopter carrying earthquake survivors and crew members crashed in fog and turbulence in Wenchuan county. No-one survived.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Rescue efforts performed by the Chinese government were praised by western media, especially in comparison with Myanmar's blockage of foreign aid during Cyclone Nargis, as well as China's previous performance during the 1976 Tangshan earthquake. China's openness during the media coverage of the Sichuan earthquake led a professor at the Peking University to say, "This is the first time [that] the Chinese media has lived up to international standards". Los Angeles Times praised China's media coverage of the quake of being "democratic".


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
Rescue efforts also came from Jet Li's One Foundation which saw the martial arts actor Wu Jing assisting in the efforts.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts
In Tuanshan Village, Longmenshan Town, Pengzhou, the Strong-Willed Pig was rescued suffering only skin trauma after being buried under rubble for 36 days. The pig had survived off rainwater and charcoal, but lost 100 kg from its original 150 kg weight. The Jianchuan Museum bought the pig from its original owner and gave the pig a new home on the museum premises. The pig became famous nationwide as it "illustrated the spirit of never giving up."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts, "Quake lakes"
As a result of the earthquake and the many strong aftershocks, many rivers became blocked by large landslides, which resulted in the formation of "quake lakes" behind the blockages; these massive amounts of water were pooling up at a very high rate behind the natural landslide dams and it was feared that the blockages would eventually crumble under the weight of the ever-increasing water mass, potentially endangering the lives of millions of people living downstream. As of May 27, 2008, 34 lakes had formed due to earthquake debris blocking and damming rivers, and it was estimated that 28 of them were still of potential danger to the local people. Entire villages had to be evacuated because of the resultant flooding.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Rescue efforts, "Quake lakes"
The most precarious of these quake-lakes was the one located in the extremely difficult terrain at Mount Tangjia in Beichuan County, Sichuan, accessible only by foot or air; an Mi-26T heavy lift helicopter belonging to the China Flying Dragon Special Aviation Company was used to bring heavy earthmoving tractors to the affected location. This operation was coupled with the work done by PLAAF Mi-17 helicopters bringing in PLA engineering corps, explosive specialists and other personnel to join 1,200 soldiers who arrived on site by foot. Five tons of fuel to operate the machinery was airlifted to the site, where a sluice was constructed to allow the safe discharge of the bottle-necked water. Downstream, more than 200,000 people were evacuated from Mianyang by June 1 in anticipation of the dam bursting.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Domestic reactions
The State Council declared a three-day period of national mourning for the quake victims starting from May 19, 2008; the PRC's National Flag and Regional Flags of Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions flown at half mast. It was the first time that a national mourning period had been declared for something other than the death of a state leader, and many have called it the biggest display of mourning since the death of Mao Zedong. At 14:28 CST on May 19, 2008, a week after the earthquake, the Chinese public held a moment of silence. People stood silent for three minutes while air defense, police and fire sirens, and the horns of vehicles, vessels and trains sounded. Cars and trucks on Beijing's roads also came to a halt. People spontaneously burst into cheering "Zhongguo jiayou!" (Let's go, China!) and "Sichuan jiayou" (Let's go, Sichuan!) afterwards.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Domestic reactions
The Ningbo Organizing Committee of the Beijing Olympic torch relay announced that the relay, scheduled to take place in Ningbo during national mourning, would be suspended for the duration of the mourning period. The route of the torch through the country was scaled down, and there was a minute of silence when the next leg started in city of Ruijin, Jiangxi on the Wednesday after the quake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Domestic reactions
Many websites converted their home page to black and white; Sina.com and Sohu, major internet portals, limited their homepages to news items and removed all advertisements. Chinese video sharing websites Youku and Tudou displayed a black background and placed multiple videos showing earthquake footage and news reports. The Chinese version of MSN, cn.msn.com, also displayed banner ads about the earthquake and the relief efforts. Other entertainment websites, including various gaming sites, such as the Chinese servers for World of Warcraft, had shut down altogether, or had corresponding links to earthquake donations. After the moments of silence, in Tiananmen Square, crowds spontaneously burst out cheering various slogans, including "Long Live China". Casinos in Macau closed down.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Domestic reactions
All Mainland Chinese television stations (along with some stations in Hong Kong and expatriate communities) cancelled all regularly-scheduled programming, displayed their logo in grayscale, and replaced their cancelled programmes with live earthquake footage from CCTV-1 for multiple days after the quake. Even pay television channels (such as Channel V) had their programmes suspended.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Domestic reactions
On the evening of May 18, CCTV-1 hosted a special four-hour program called The Giving of Love (simplified Chinese: 爱的奉献; traditional Chinese: 愛的奉獻), hosted by regulars from the CCTV New Year's Gala and round-the-clock coverage anchor Bai Yansong. It was attended by a wide range of entertainment, literary, business and political figures from mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan. Donations of the evening totalled 1.5 billion Chinese Yuan (~US$208 million). Of the donations, CCTV gave the biggest corporate contribution at ¥50 million.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Domestic reactions
Almost at the same time in Taiwan, a similarly themed programme was on air hosted by the sitting president Ma Ying-jeou. In June, Hong Kong actor Jackie Chan, who donated $1.57 million to the victims, made a music video alongside other artists entitled "Promise"; the song was composed by Andy Lau. The Artistes 512 Fund Raising Campaign, an 8-hour fundraising marathon, was held on June 1 in Hong Kong; it was attended by some 200 Sinosphere musicians and celebrities. In Singapore, MediaCorp Channel 8 hosted a 'live' programme 让爱川流不息 to raise funds for the victims.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
Although the Chinese government was initially praised for its response to the quake (especially in comparison to Myanmar's ruling military junta's blockade of aid during Cyclone Nargis), it then saw an erosion in confidence over the school construction scandal.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
The central government estimates that over 7,000 inadequately engineered schoolrooms collapsed in the earthquake. Chinese citizens have since invented a catch phrase: "tofu-dregs schoolhouses" (Chinese: 豆腐渣校舍), to mock both the quality and the quantity of these inferior constructions that killed so many school children. Due to the one-child policy, many families lost their only child when schools in the region collapsed during the earthquake. Consequently, Sichuan provincial and local officials have lifted the restriction for families whose only child was either killed or severely injured in the disaster. So-called "illegal children" under 18 years of age may be registered as legal replacements for their dead siblings; if the dead child was illegal, no further outstanding fines would apply. Reimbursement would not, however, be offered for fines that were already levied.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
On May 29, 2008, government officials began inspecting the ruins of thousands of schools that collapsed, searching for clues about why they crumbled. Thousands of parents around the province have accused local officials and builders of cutting corners in school construction, citing that after the quake other nearby buildings were little damaged. In the aftermath of the quake, many local governments promised to formally investigate the school collapses, but as of July 17, 2008, across Sichuan, parents of children lost in collapsed schools complained they had yet to receive any reports. Local officials urged them not to protest but the parents demonstrated and demanded an investigation. Furthermore, censors discouraged stories of poorly built schools from being published in the media and there was an incident where police drove the protestors away.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
In the China Digital Times an article reports a close analysis by an alleged Chinese construction engineer known online as "Book Blade" (书剑子), who stated:


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
"...because of our nation's particular brand of education, our children are fed 20 years of Marxist philosophy with Chinese characteristics—a philosophy that has nothing to say about saving lives...School construction is the worst. First, there’s not enough capital. Schools in poor areas have small budgets and, unlike schools in the cities, they can’t collect huge fees, so they’re pressed for money. With construction, add in exploitation by government officials, education officials, school managers, etc. and you can imagine what’s left over for the actual building of schools. When earthquake prevention standards are raised, government departments, major businesses, etc. will all appraise and reinforce their buildings. But these schools with their 70s-era buildings, no-one pays attention to them. Because of this, the older school buildings suffer from inadequate protection while the new buildings have been shoddily constructed."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
On Children's Day, June 1, 2008, many parents went to the rubble of schools to mourn for their children. The surviving children, who were mostly living in relief centres, performed ceremonies marking the special day, but also acknowledging the earthquake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
Ye Zhiping, the principal of Sangzao Middle School in Sangzao, one of the largest in An County, has been credited with proactive action that spared the lives of all 2,323 pupils in attendance when the earthquake happened. During a three-year period that ended in 2007, he oversaw a major overhaul of his school. During that time he obtained more than 400,000 yuan (US$60,000) from the county education department, money used to widen and strengthen concrete pillars and the balcony railing of all four storeys of his school, as well as secure its concrete floors.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
The AP reported that "The state-controlled media has largely ignored the issue, apparently under the propaganda bureau's instructions. Parents and volunteers who have questioned authorities have been detained and threatened."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
However, Reuters reported in June that, to date, Chinese prosecutors have joined an official inquiry into ten collapsed schools during May's devastating earthquake to gain first-hand material of construction quality at the collapsed schools, launch preliminary inquiries and prepare for possible investigations into professional crime. It was also reported that safety checks were to be carried out at schools across China after last month's earthquake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
The New York Times reported that "government officials in Beijing and Sichuan have said they are investigating the collapses. In an acknowledgment of the weakness of building codes in the countryside, the National Development and Reform Commission said on May 27 that it had drafted an amendment to improve construction standards for primary and middle schools in rural areas. Experts are reviewing the draft, the commission said." To limit protests, officials pushed parents to sign a document, which forbade them from holding protests, in exchange of money, but some who refused to sign were threatened.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
The payment amounts varied from school to school but were approximately the same. In Hanwang, parents were offered a package valued at US$8,800 in cash and a per-parent pension of nearly US$5,600. Furthermore, officials used other methods of silencing: riot police officers broke up protests by parents; the authorities set up cordons around the schools; and officials ordered the Chinese news media to stop reporting on school collapses.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
Besides parents, Liu Shaokun (刘绍坤), a Sichuan school teacher, was detained on June 25, 2008, for "disseminating rumors and destroying social order" about the Sichuan earthquake. Liu's family was later told that he was being investigated on suspicion of the crime of inciting subversion. Liu had travelled to the Shifang, taken photos of collapsed school buildings, and put them online. He had also expressed his anger at "the shoddy tofu-dregs buildings" (豆腐渣工程) in a media interview. He was ordered to serve one year of re-education through labor (RTL). According to the organization Human Rights in China, Liu has been released to serve his RTL sentence outside of the labor camp.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
On May 15, 2008 Geoffery York of the Globeandmail.com reported that the shoddily constructed buildings are commonly called "tofu buildings" because builders cut corners by replacing steel rods with thin iron wires for concrete re-inforcement; using inferior grade cement, if any at all; and using fewer bricks than they should. One local was quoted in the article as saying that "the supervising agencies did not check to see if it met the national standards."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Collapse of schoolhouses
In January 2010, Hong Kong-based English newspaper The Standard reported that writer Tan Zuoren attempted to document shoddy construction that may have led to massive casualties in schools, was sentenced to in prison ostensibly for his writing an article in 2007 in support of the pro-democracy movement in 1989.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Foreign and domestic aid
Because of the magnitude of the quake, and the media attention on China, foreign nations and organizations immediately responded to the disaster by offering condolences and assistance. On May 14, UNICEF reported that China formally requested the support of the international community to respond to the needs of affected families.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Foreign and domestic aid, Mainland China
By May 14, the Ministry of Civil Affairs stated that 10.7 billion yuan (approximately US$1.5 billion) had been donated by the Chinese public. Houston Rockets center Yao Ming, one of the country's most popular sports icons, gave $214,000 and $71,000 to the Red Cross Society of China. The association has also collected a total of $26 million in donations. Other multinational firms located in China have also announced large amounts of donations.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Foreign and domestic aid, Mainland China
The Red Cross Society of China flew 557 tents and 2,500 quilts valued at 788,000 yuan (US$113,000) to Wenchuan County. The Amity Foundation already began relief work in the region and has earmarked US$143,000 for disaster relief. The Sichuan Ministry of Civil Affairs said that they have provided 30,000 tents for those left homeless.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Foreign and domestic aid, Mainland China
Central State-owned enterprises have accumulatively donated more than $48.6 million. China National Petroleum Corp and Sinopec donated 10 million yuan each to the disaster area.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Foreign and domestic aid, Mainland China
Following the earthquake, donations were made by people from all over mainland China, with booths set up in schools, at banks, and around gas stations. People also donated blood, resulting in according to Xinhua long line-ups in most major Chinese cities. Many donated through text messaging on mobile phones to accounts set up by China Unicom and China Mobile By May 16, the Chinese government had allocated a total of $772 million for earthquake relief so far, up sharply from $159 million from May 14.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Foreign and domestic aid, Mainland China
On May 16 China stated it had also received $457 million in donated money and goods for rescue efforts so far, including $83 million from 19 countries and four international organizations. Saudi Arabia was the largest aid donor to China, providing close to €40,000,000 in financial assistance, and an additional €8,000,000 worth of relief materials.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, First anniversary
On May 12, 2009, China marked the first anniversary of the quake with a moment of silence as people across the nation remembered the dead. The government also opened access to the sealed ruins of the Beichuan county seat for three days, after which it would be frozen in time as a state earthquake relic museum in remembrance of the disaster. There were also several concerts across the country to raise money for the survivors of the quake.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Completion of works
In 2008, State Council established a counterpart support plan (《汶川地震灾后恢复重建对口支援方案》). The plan is to arrange 19 eastern and central provinces and municipalities to help 18 counties, on "one province to one affected county" basis. The plan spanned 3 years, and cost no less than one percent of the province or municipality's budget.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Completion of works
In 2012, vice governor Wei Hong announced that the restoration and reconstruction are completed:


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Completion of works
Wei said that 99.5 percent of the budget, or 865.8 billion yuan (137.5 billion U.S. dollars), has been invested in post-quake reconstruction efforts, and 99 percent of 29,692 related projects have been completed. . . . Local governments have successfully helped more than 12 million people in rural and urban areas repair their houses, and have relocated 200,000 farmers who lost their farmlands, the vice governor added.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
The earthquake was the worst to strike the Sichuan area in over 30 years. Following the quake, experts and the general public sought information on whether or not the earthquake could have been predicted, and whether or not studying statistics related to the quake could result in better prediction of earthquakes in the future. Earthquake prediction is not yet established science; there was no consensus within the scientific community that earthquake "prediction" is possible.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
In 2002, Chinese geologist Chen Xuezhong published a Seismic Risk Analysis study in which he came to the conclusion that beginning with 2003, attention should be paid to the possibility of an earthquake with a magnitude of over 7.0 occurring in Sichuan region. He based his study on statistical correlation. That Sichuan is a seismically active area has been discussed for years prior to the quake, though few studies point to a specific date and time.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
In a press conference held by the State Council Information Office the day after the earthquake, geologist Zhang Xiaodong, deputy director of CEA's Seismic Monitoring Network Center, restated that earthquake prediction was a global issue, in the sense that no proven methods exist, and that no prediction notification was received before the earthquake. Seismologist Gary Gibson of Monash University in Australia told Deutsche Presse-Agentur that he also did not see anything that could be regarded as having 'predicted' the earthquake's occurrence.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
The earthquake also provided opportunities for researchers to retrofit data in order to model future earthquake predictions. Using data from the Intermagnet Lanzhou geomagnetic observatory, geologists Lazo Pekevski from the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje in Macedonia and Strachimir Mavrodiev from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences attempted to establish a "time prediction method" through collecting statistics on geomagnetism with tidal gravitational potential. Using this method, they were said to have predicted the time of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake with an accuracy of ±1 day. The same study, however, acknowledges the limitation of earthquake prediction models, and does not mention that the location of the quake could be accurately predicted.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
An article in Science suggested that the construction and filling of the Zipingpu Dam may have triggered the earthquake. The chief engineer of the Sichuan Geology and Mineral Bureau said that the sudden shift of a huge quantity of water into the region could have relaxed the tension between the two sides of the fault, allowing them to move apart, and could have increased the direct pressure on it, causing a violent rupture. The effect was "25 times more" than a year's worth of natural stress from tectonic movement. The government had disregarded warnings about so many large-scale dam projects in a seismically active area. Researchers have been denied access to seismological and geological data to examine the cause of the quake further.


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
Malaysia-based Yazhou Zhoukan conducted an interview with former researcher at the China Seismological Bureau Geng Qingguo (耿庆国), in which Geng claimed that a confidential written report was sent to the State Seismological Bureau on April 30, 2008, warning about the possible occurrence of a significant earthquake in Ngawa Prefecture region of Sichuan around May 8, with a range of 10 days before or after the quake. Geng, while acknowledging that earthquake prediction was broadly considered problematic by the scientific community, believed that "the bigger the earthquake, the easier it is to predict."


2008 Sichuan earthquake, Precursors and postmortems
Geng had long attempted to establish a correlation between the occurrence of droughts and earthquakes; Premier Zhou Enlai reportedly took an interest in Geng's work. Geng's drought-earthquake correlation theory was first released in 1972, and said to have predicted the 1975 Haicheng and 1976 Tangshan earthquakes. The same Yazhou Zhoukan article pointed out the inherent difficulties associated with predicting earthquakes. In response, an official with the Seismological Bureau stated that "earthquake prediction is widely acknowledged around the world to be difficult from a scientific standpoint." The official also denied that the Seismological Bureau had received reports predicting the earthquake.


2008 Sichuan riots
In Sichuan province, in an area incorporating the traditional Tibetan areas Kham and Amdo, Tibetan monks and police clashed in riots on 16 March in Ngaba county (Aba) after the monks staged a protest. It formed part of the 2008 Tibetan unrest and was one of two major events to happen in Sichuan during 2008, the other being the 2008 Sichuan earthquake in May 2008.


2008 Sichuan riots, Events
On 16 March, Tibetan monks staged a protest against its harsh treatment by the Chinese government. The word got out and the police became involved. The monks and local residents clashed with police, killing at least one policeman, and setting fire to three or four police vans.


2008 Sichuan riots, Events
In Aba, an eyewitness said 17 people were killed, including a young girl that attended middle school. By 18 March, the witness described the area as teeming with police and soldiers, and the people as anxious. Protests continued for several days.


2008 Sichuan riots, Events
On 24 March, AP reports that Chinese state-run Xinhua said "381 people involved in protests...had surrendered to police" in Aba, which was not verified by independent sources.


2008 Sichuan riots, Unverified reports
As reported by the BBC, the unverified reports in Sichuan and the "expulsions and restrictions of foreigners, and uncorroborated reports of vast convoys of paramilitaries entering areas of unrest, raise fears that the government has created a "black box" in which its security personnel can take action without scrutiny."


2008 Sichuan riots, Unverified reports
The BBC also reports, "Unrest was also said to have flared again in Aba, Sichuan, where there are claims that police shot between 13 and 30 protesters after a police station was set on fire. Like Tibetan exiles' claims that at least 80 have died in Lhasa, the reports of deaths are impossible to verify because of the restrictions on journalists."


2008 Sichuan riots, Crackdown on violence
During the week of 22 March, authorities and security forces in the city of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, locked down a Tibetan neighborhood located near the Southwest University for Nationalities and the Wu Hou Temple. The lockdown comes amid unconfirmed reports of Tibetan protests earlier in the week and unconfirmed reports of a stabbing attack of a Han Chinese man by a Tibetan. Cars and other vehicles are not allowed to drive through the neighborhood, which has a large police presence.


2008 Sichuan riots, Crackdown on violence
In Sichuan's Ngaba prefecture, Chinese authorities fired on protestors. The Tibetan government-in-exile's Central Tibetan Administration states the police shot and killed 19 people during the protest. The Chinese authorities denied killing anyone. Photographs of bodies with bullet wounds were released by a rights group.


2008 Sichuan riots, Crackdown on violence
The Foreign Correspondents Club of China has reported "official interference with journalists in Chengdu", and that travel by foreign journalists to other areas of the province has been restricted.


2008 Sichuan riots, Arrests
On 21, 27 March nuns of the Kirti Monastery in Ngawa county were arrested by Chinese police forces. The information was confirmed by the Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung after phonecalls into the region with locals. Troops also blocked roads in nearby Sertar. The London-based Free Tibet Campaign reported that troops had been sent to the county after residents blew up a bridge near the village of Gudu. Arrests have also been reported from Sertar after security forces cracked down on protests.


2008 Sichuan riots, Further clashes
On Monday, 24 March 2008 in Drango county, Garze prefecture, a Tibetan rights group reports 200 monks, nuns, and ordinary people gathered to march before clashes with police began. Police fired shots into the crowd, killing a monk and critically wounding another monk, as reported to Associated Press by the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD).


2008 Sichuan riots, Further clashes
On 25 March, Chinese state-run Xinhua News Agency, citing local authorities, reported that one police officer was dead and "several others" injured, as sympathy protests spread in western Tibet, and added the police were "forced to fire warning shots" and had "dispersed the lawless mobsters."


2008 Sichuan riots, Further clashes
On 27 and 30 March, the suicides by two monks in Amdo have been reported by TCHRD as an act of freeing from oppression. Independent verification is however outstanding.


2008 Sichuan riots, Further clashes
On 3 April new violence broke out in Sichuan as various sources report. According to Xinhua News Agency at least one government official has been seriously injured. An overseas Tibet activist group said eight people had been killed in the incident. It said police opened fire on hundreds of Buddhist monks and lay people who marched on local government offices to demand the release of two monks detained for possessing photographs of the Dalai Lama. Unidentified eyewitnesses told Radio Free Asia's Tibetan agency that 15 people had been killed in the incident.


2008 Sicilian regional election
The Sicilian regional election of 2008 for the renewal of the Sicilian Regional Assembly and the election of the Presidency of Sicily, Italy, was held on 13 and on 14 April 2008.


2008 Sicilian regional election
The election was competed by two main competitors: Raffaele Lombardo for the centre-right and Anna Finocchiaro for the centre-left. Lombardo won by a landslide, 65.3% against 30.4% of Finocchiaro.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship
The 2008 FIM Sidecarcross world championship, the 29th edition of the competition, started on 20 April and finished after twelve race weekends on 14 September 2008. Daniël Willemsen and Reto Grütter were the defending champions, having won the title in 2007, and repeated this achievement in 2008.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Overview
The 2008 season was the 29th edition of the sidecarcross world championship.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Overview
The twelve races of the season were held in ten countries, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, France (2x), Germany (2x), Croatia, Belgium, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine and Denmark.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Overview
After 17 seasons in the Sidecarcross World Championship, five-time World Champion Kristers Sergis announced his retirement from the competition, finishing his career with a second place in the 2008 edition.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Format
Every Grand Prix weekend is split into two races, both held on the same day. This means, the 2008 season with its twelve Grand Prix has 24 races. Each race lasts for 30 minutes plus two rounds. The two races on a weekend actually get combined to determine an overall winner. While this overall winners receives no extra WC points, they usually are awarded a special trophy.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Format
The first twenty teams of each race score competition points. The point system for the 2008 season is as follows:


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Classification, Manufacturers
Parallel to the riders championship, a manufacturers competition is also held. The final standings in the manufacturers competition were:


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Race by race statistics
The numbers for every team are allocated according to their 2007 season finish, meaning the world champion received number one and so on. The numbers for drivers not participating this season were not re-allocated. New entries received a random number above the number 48 which is the last place achieved by a driver in the points in 2007. This system makes it possible to see a driver's improvement or decline from last year by comparing number with position.


2008 Sidecarcross World Championship, Race by race statistics
The following teams have taken part in races this season:


2008 Sierra Leonean local elections
Local elections were held in Sierra Leone on 5 July 2008 for the first time since the Sierra Leonean Civil War. Following this election, the United Nations political mission UNIOSIL planned to withdraw. According to early results, the ruling All People's Congress is leading the Sierra Leone People's Party, with the People's Movement for Democratic Change clearly behind in third place.


2008 Silver Helmet (Poland)
The 2008 Silver Helmet (Polish: Turniej o Srebrny Kask, BK) is the 2008 version of Silver Helmet organized by the Polish Motor Union (PZM).


2008 Silver Helmet (Poland)
The Final took place on October 10, 2008 in Rzeszów.


2008 Silver Helmet (Poland), Final
m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance •  t - exclusion for touching the tapes •  x - other exclusion •  e - retired or mechanical failure •  f - fell •  ns - non-starter •  nc - non-classify


2008 Silverstone GP2 Series round
2008 Silverstone GP2 Series round was a GP2 Series motor race held on 5 and 6 July 2008 at Silverstone Circuit, United Kingdom. It was the fiveth round of the 2008 GP2 Series season. The race weekend supported the 2008 British Grand Prix.


2008 Simaria by-election
On 4 February 2008 a by-election was held in for the Simaria (SC) seat of the Legislative Assembly of the Indian state of Jharkhand. The by-election was called after the death of the sitting MLA Upendra Nath Das.


2008 Simaria by-election, Precedents
Bharatiya Janata Party legislator Upendra Nath Das, who had been elected from Simaria in the 2005 Jharkhand Legislative Assembly election, died from cancer on 6 August 2007. In the 2005 election his main competitors had been Ram Chandra Ram from the Communist Party of India and Yogendra Nath Baitha from the Rashtriya Janata Dal. The notification for the by-poll was issued on 10 January 2008.


2008 Simaria by-election, Precedents
Before the by-election the ruling coalition led by Madhu Koda held 42 out of the 82 seats of the Legislative Assembly; 17 from Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, 9 from the Indian National Congress, 7 from RJD and 9 independents. As United Progressive Alliance partners could not agree of a single candidate, Koda declared himself neutral in the by-election and did not campaign for any candidate.


2008 Simaria by-election, Candidates
Fifteen nominations were presented for the by-election, but one candidate (Binod Bihari Paswan of UGDP) withdrew from the race. In total 12 men and 2 women stood as candidates. Nine of them stood as independents.


2008 Simaria by-election, Candidates, Yogendra Nath Baitha
The by-election coincided with the lapse of a 60-day deadline that the Indian National Congress had put forth to Koda to comply with a number of demands, and the party threatened to bring down the government if unfulfilled. On 16 January 2008 the Indian National Congress declared that it would contest the by-election on its own.


2008 Simaria by-election, Candidates, Yogendra Nath Baitha
Yogendra Nath Baitha had won the Simaria seat in the 2000 Bihar Legislative Assembly election. He had served as the Jharkhand State Committee president of RJD. But ahead of the Simaria by-poll, RJD withdrew Baitha as its candidate for the sake of UPA unity. In response Baitha broke with the party and contested the by-poll as an Indian National Congress candidate instead. Baitha presented his nomination papers on 17 January 2008 in the presence of Jharkhand Congress state President Pradeep Kumar Balmuchu. One hypothesis on why Congress decided to break UPA ranks was that it sought to use the by-election to 'test the waters' ahead of the 2009 Legislative Assembly election. Notably, Congress leaders had expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the Koda cabinet in terms of development and corruption.


2008 Simaria by-election, Candidates, Yogendra Nath Baitha
Union Ministers Ajay Maken and Subodh Kant Sahay campaigned in favour of Baitha.


2008 Simaria by-election, Candidates, Anjali Bhogta
26-year old Anjali Bhogta contested the election as an independent. A key demand of her campaign was the set-up a NTPC power plant at Tandwa. Her husband had been jailed, accused of belonging to the Tritiya Prastuti Committee (a Naxalite splinter group). Bhogta herself had been a BJP member. Fearing that her candidacy would draw voters from J.P.S. Bhogta, the JVM(P) actively tried to convince her to withdraw her nomination.