China quake toll rises to 1,144

BEIJING - The toll in the 7.1-magnitude quake in China’s Qinghai province has risen to 1,144, an official said.

At least 417 people remained missing as of 5 p.m. Friday, two-and-a-half days after the devastating earthquake shook the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Yushu at 7.49 a.m. Wednesday, while 11,744 people were injured, Xia Xueping, spokesman with the emergency rescue headquarters was quoted as saying Friday evening by Xinhua.

Xia said the toll rose rapidly because the rescue forces recovered more bodies from the debris, while the missing list climbed as the transient population in the business town were counted for the first time.

A total of 1,179 seriously injured people had been transported to hospitals in Golmud and in Qinghai provincial capital Xining and several other cities in the neighbouring provinces.

Many people were still buried under the debris of collapsed houses in the hardest-hit Gyegu town, seat of the Yushu prefecture government and home to 100,000 people.