Rescue workers rushing to find survivors in NZ quake

With clouds of dust rising from the streets, Christchurch, New Zealand, looked as if a bomb had hit it.

The Canterbury Television building where two Koreans went missing was heavily damaged. Without the edge of the building that was on the brink of collapse, few could imagine a seven-story building used to be there.

Hundreds of rescue workers were in downtown Christchurch, the second-largest city in New Zealand that was damaged by a 6.3-magnitude earthquake Tuesday. The collapsed TV building in the city center was crowded with rescuers as well as reporters from Japan, China and other countries.

○ Two Koreans missing

Forklifts and excavators made big noises in getting rid of debris from the collapsed building. The structure’s metal frames were also crumpled.

Twenty-three corpses were discovered at the site Thursday, bringing the death toll to 47. Many of the dead remained unidentified.

Some 60 Japanese rescue workers were dispatched to the collapsed building, under which 27 Japanese nationals were trapped. Katata Yoshihiro, the head of the Japanese rescue team, said, “We’re closely working with New Zealand authorities to rescue people but listening devices and sniffer dogs have found no signs yet.”

Around 100 Japanese reporters from media such as NHK and Fuji TV were keen to hear news about Japanese survivors.

The Korean Foreign Ministry expressed caution over whether siblings Yu Gil-hwan, 24, and Yu Na-on, 21, were alive. “There is a possibility that the siblings were not in this building when the earthquake hit,” a diplomatic source said. “Since they haven’t been found yet among the 98 dead, they might be alive.”

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