Rain hinders work on rising lake

QINGLIAN, China -- Tangjiashan Lake rose another 5 feet Thursday, about 70 feet from the top of the wall of rock, dirt and trees that holds the reservoir of river water trapped since the May 12 earthquake devastated northern Sichuan province.

For the past three days, a phalanx of earth-moving machines and soldiers has been struggling to complete a 300-yard sluice that would relieve pressure on the lake growing behind the landslide dam on the Jian River.

Officials warned Thursday it might take three more days before the drainage canal was complete.

Rain grounded the army's fleet of supply helicopters Thursday, forcing 1,000 soldiers to clamber along two miles of treacherous rockslides to bring fuel to the bulldozers. By the end of the day, engineers said the 50-foot-wide canal was more than a third complete.

For the 1.3 million people living downstream, the looming threat is adding to the misery of coping with a disaster that has killed a confirmed 68,500 people, with 87,000 injured. Officials say 19,000 more are missing and presumed dead.

In recent days, 160,000 people have been relocated from low-lying towns, and the government has set in place an ambitious evacuation plan that would send more than a million people dashing to higher ground should the dam break.

Although attention has largely focused on Tangjiashan, 34 other so-called quake lakes have formed within the steep ravines that stretch north to the Tibetan plateau and 28 are at risk of bursting, Xinhua said.

"Earthquakes are unpredictable but at least we would have some warning if a flood is coming," said Cheng Huayuan, 65, a retired factory worker who was among thousands of people camped out in Mianyang.

Across the region, emergency-relief officials have created 50 evacuation routes and everyone, they say, is within two miles of higher ground. Some mountain towns would have little warning should the dam break, but in Mianyang, the second-largest city in Sichuan, residents would have three hours to scurry to safety.

To get the word out, the authorities have outfitted cars and trucks with loudspeakers.

Chemicals ignite; hundreds evacuated

CHENGDU, China -- A stockpile of chemicals being used to disinfect a quake-shattered Chinese town ignited Thursday and injured scores of soldiers doing relief work, adding to a day of problems for urgent recovery efforts.

The chemical fire took place in Leigu, in devastated Beichuan county. The official Xinhua news agency reported more than 800 people were evacuated to avoid a cloud of dense chlorine gas caused by the blaze.

As in many destroyed towns, officials have been spraying disinfecting bleach on streets and rubble to prevent disease breakouts. Thousands of people are still missing and their bodies could be buried.

Japanese aid: Japan on Thursday decided against using military aircraft to deliver aid to earthquake victims in China after Chinese officials reportedly expressed concerns about what would have been the first Japanese military deployment to China since the two countries were enemies during World War II.

Finding fault: An education official in Sichuan province conceded that poor official oversight and corruption might have contributed to the collapse of numerous schools during the earthquake. The official, Lin Qiang, also said he would forgo his own plans to carry the Olympic torch during its relay through the earthquake region.