New town springing up in quake-hit province
Workers promise homes for 20,000 by July in wake of Chinese disaster A survivor of the May 12 earthquake in central China walks past newly constructed temporary housing in the earthquake-hit area of Dujiangyuan, Sichuan province, on Tuesday.

The challenge of rebuilding China
May 27: NBC's Ian Williams reports on how one village is trying to recover following the China quake.
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By Jill Drew
LEIGU, China - With as many as 14 million earthquake survivors in urgent need of housing, China is beginning to rebuild from scratch.

It is doing so in places like this mountain plain in Sichuan province, where workers are erecting a new town of blue-roofed homes for 20,000 people. Construction got underway here late last week, less than three miles from Beichuan, a town wiped out in the 7.9-magnitude quake.

Fields of wheat and corn have been overrun with earth-moving equipment as construction crews assemble long rows of cookie-cutter houses with walls of Styrofoam sandwiched between two pieces of sheet metal. Builders vow the new homes will be ready by the end of June.

Would-be residents began arriving over the weekend. Originally from nearly two dozen villages scattered around Beichuan county, the people were bused here from an emergency shelter at a sports stadium in nearby Mianyang city. Among the first earthquake survivors to be moved to what is expected to be a permanent relocation site, they are living for now in a sea of government-provided tents next to the construction zone.

Finding room to build
Beichuan, nestled in a sliver of valley surrounded by mountains, will not be rebuilt because authorities deem the area too hazardous. Nearby Leigu, however, is situated along a broad, fertile expanse farther down the valley. Before the earthquake, it was a farming town of 18,000 residents. Most of the homes here, as in Beichuan, collapsed in the earthquake, and 1,000 people died. But the fields provide space to build, and now Leigu's survivors will have to make room for new neighbors.

The one-room dwellings are being built in caterpillar-like lines of 14, each 65-square-foot home attached to the ones next to it. There will be electricity and running water, but current plans call for every two homes to share a tap. Every 50 homes will share a bath house and a kitchen. The floors will be hard-packed dirt covered by plastic.

"It's not realistic to have concrete, attached floors at this point," said Wang Di Sheng, a government official from Jinan, the capital of Shandong province, which provided the materials and is supervising the construction of 7,000 houses for the local authority. The dwellings are supposed to last up to three years while the government constructs a permanent community here.

Though spartan, these portable homes are a step up from the tents and tarps that have been the main shelters for millions of people displaced by the quake. China's top leaders have urged manufacturers and construction crews to rush production of the homes, as the rainy season begins and threatens to turn hundreds of tent cities into swamps.

Construction is quick. It took about 24 hours this week for a 10-person crew to put up one row of homes. First they erected a metal frame. Then they slid the walls and windows into pre-fabricated grooves, tightened screws and reinforcement rods. Then they fastened down the metal roof parts. Wiring and plumbing come later.

so how many Nigerians do you know that will willingly accept a single bedroom dingy house
that is basically put together with pre-fabricated materials?
even as a gift??

Dis Guy:

so how many Nigerians do you know that will willingly accept a single bedroom dingy house
that is basically put together with pre-fabricated materials?
even as a gift??

I think millions of Nigerians would be happy to have them pre-fabricated houses.

Dis Guy:

so how many Nigerians do you know that will willingly accept a single bedroom dingy house
that is basically put together with pre-fabricated materials?
even as a gift??

i think if u had actually read the article u wud not respond this way.

the point isn't just the make shift houses they are building now (which by the way after massacres in nigeria, many would welcome) but also the speed they are rebuilding the 'concrete' houses. by june!
how many nigerian govt have built houses for the poor in 2yrs? much less under 2 months?

so how many Nigerians do you know that will willingly accept a single bedroom dingy house
that is basically put together with pre-fabricated materials?
even as a gift??

My man, I think you've missed the point.

This has nothing to do with the size of the buildings or the quality of the materials that are being used to build these buildings; it has to do with the quality of leadership, dedication and commitment of these folks to raise up their country back to normal as soon as possible.
I truly admire their strength and determination during this difficult period. (Mr. Bush and Nigerian leaders should be taking lesson from this new development).

God forbid! so you want make thousands die before they build new houses? may that your wish and prayer no reach your house roof not to talk of heaven!

Make we dey poor and broke as we dey for naija instead of all that hell happening in Asia! atleast we dey alive!

Once again only dunder-heads of Nigerians will miss the main point the original poster was making. The abililty to respond quickly to natural disasters in the eventuality it happens in Nigeria.

I think the Ikeja bomb blast still looks as terrible as it was when the incident occurred originally if not worse.

Big B1:

My man, I think you've missed the point.

This has nothing to do with the size of the buildings or the quality of the materials that are being used to build these buildings; it has to do with the quality of leadership, dedication and commitment of these folks to raise up their country back to normal as soon as possible.
I truly admire their strength and determination during this difficult period. (Mr. Bush and Nigerian leaders should be taking lesson from this new development).

For once, this one can type something PARTIALLY reasonable. Please don't compare Mr. Bush to your Yaradunce abeg! Bush might be a drunk, but Yaradunce is a bloody born dunce. George Bush alone does not rule the US. Blame anything on the congress in the US.

In Nigeria, decisions are made over your head without representation with pure dictatorship. If you compare George Bush to Yaradua, you must be smoking some weather-beaten cow dung!

I guess, Hillary Clinton and Obama are to be blamed for the failure to provide necessary protection for the Louisianians before Katrina and failure to quickly restore things back to normal in Louisiana after Katrina.

Leadership is a state of mind, while ignorance is a natural disease; The different between a Nigerian president and Mr. Bush is not much.

For once, this one

Absolutely not a nice way to refer to one another; let's show some self respect.

Big B1:

I guess, Hillary Clinton and Obama are to be blamed for the failure to provide necessary protection for the Louisianians before Katrina and failure to quickly restore things back to normal in Louisiana after Katrina.

Leadership is a state of mind, while ignorance is a natural disease; The different between a Nigerian president and Mr. Bush is not much.

Yes they are! The people of Louisiana have elected officials don't they? What were their congressmen and women doing? But taking extended breaks and neglecting the needs of the people of Louisiana?


Please look at Nigeria and look at the US. . .you cannot compare both. What excuse do you have when the whole of Nigeria looks worse than the Katrina zone?

Please if you want respect, you have to earn it ok?

If the elected officials in Louisiana cannot push for the reforms in Lousiana like they were voted in to do. . .too bad. George Bush is only one man!

In Nigeria, you have nothing! 419 elections and figureheads!

You've talked.

yes, non profitable talk.

Spermdrops:

Yes they are! The people of Louisiana have elected officials don't they? What were their congressmen and women doing? But taking extended breaks and neglecting the needs of the people of Louisiana?


Please look at Nigeria and look at the US. . .you cannot compare both. What excuse do you have when the whole of Nigeria looks worse than the Katrina zone?

Please if you want respect, you have to earn it ok?

If the elected officials in Louisiana cannot push for the reforms in Lousiana like they were voted in to do. . .too bad. George Bush is only one man!

In Nigeria, you have nothing! 419 elections and figureheads!

You make very good points. If only more people would consider that each time they try to blame the one for the faults of the all. I like the way you are able to separate what happens in Nigeria from what happens outside here in the USA. The Nigerian president still is practically is in charge of everything down there, even banks. Makes me wonder what the Nigerian idea of Democracy is really about .

zillaxy:


i think if u had actually read the article u would not respond this way.

the point isn't just the make shift houses they are building now (which by the way after massacres in nigeria, many would welcome) but also the speed they are rebuilding the 'concrete' houses. by june!
how many Nigerian govt have built houses for the poor in 2yrs? much less under 2 months?

I actually read the article and I'm not surprised at all just making a side point, they have all the resources
in place-the finance, the 'structure' and manpower
there are many reasons why nigeria can't be like that for now at least.

on the other hand could the upcoming Olympic games act as a catalyst,
considering there are many nosey western tourist coming through
the Chinese govt have been surprisingly open in the past few weeks.