The Chinese army has deployed 100,000 soldiers to help in the rescue operation following Monday’s devastating earthquake. A hundred elite soldiers have also been parachuted to the Sichuan region in the south-west of China. The official death toll from the powerful earthquake stands at around 14,000, but the state news agency reported that several times that figure are still unaccounted for.

Tens of thousands of people are missing, many believed to have been buried under debris.

The 7.9 magnitude tremor was the worst to hit the country in three decades.

Most people in the region chose to spend a second night outdoors in makeshift tents amid fears of buildings collapsing.

The government’s large-scale response is aimed at reassuring the Chinese and showing the world it is capable of handling the disaster and ready to host the Olympic games in August.

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