Premier Wen Jiabao with children rescued from the earthquake in Mianyang. XINHUA

　　ON May 12, the biggest earthquake in China for more than 30 years hit Wenchuan, Sichuan. Buildings went down and cities were leveled （夷平）. Several thousand people were buried （被埋）.

　　As of Friday the earthquake had killed about 23,000 across the country. The number will probably grow.

　　People in the areas are facing death and disease. But the whole nation is behind them.

　　Only two hours after the quake, Premier Wen Jiabao got on a plane to Chengdu. He is leading rescue （救援） work there.

　　PLA soldiers and policemen are trying to find people alive in the rubble. Helicopters （直升机） airdrop （空投） food, water and medicine. Medical teams go to the quake-hit areas.

　　People outside of Sichuan are also offering money, blood （血） and other things to help.

　　During the earthquake, many school buildings fell down. Students were buried. But they didnt give up hope. Many got out with help. Here are some stories about the brave students.

　　Jiang Dejia and Liao Li are both students from Shifang Yinghua Middle School in Deyang. They were buried in the school rubble for two days. Jiang and Liao didnt know each other before the earthquake. But they kept each other going during the two, scary days. They were both rescued later.

　　A Junior 1 girl called Deng Qingqing from Shifang Yinghua Middle School was buried under the rubble. She was cold and hungry. But the brave girl had a flashlight （手电筒）. She used it to help her read books.

　　Li Anning, 16, is from Beichuan Middle School. She and her classmates sang songs under the rubble to comfort each other.