YINGXIU, China — A powerful aftershock knocked out roads and communications in some of the most quake-ravaged parts of central China on Friday, as emergency crews rescued 33 people who had survived up to 100 improbable hours trapped in the ruins.
Tens of thousands of people are considered buried or missing throughout the disaster zone, among an estimated 12 million people living within a 60-mile radius of the epicenter of Wenchuan.
Damage from the magnitude-5.5 aftershock was a temporary setback to the mammoth relief operation. Repair crews were rapidly restoring mobile phone services and unblocking roads within four hours, state media reported.
The government said it would investigate why so many school buildings collapsed in the quake and severely punish anyone responsible for shoddy construction. Officials in at least six provinces promised to tear down dangerous school buildings to protect students, state media reported. The quake destroyed about 6,900 classrooms, not including those in the hardest-hit counties.
More than 4 million apartments and homes were damaged or destroyed in Sichuan, Housing Minister Jiang Weixin told reporters.
The government said it had allocated $772 million for earthquake relief, according to the central bank.
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