An earthquake killed 14 people, injured nearly 400 and destroyed 8,500 homes in Jiangxi province in eastern China on Saturday morning, the official Xinhua news agency reported.Some 130,000 homes were damaged in the worst-hit Jiujiang and Ruicheng counties, while over 420,000 people moved to safer areas.The quake, which measured 5.7 on the Richter scale, hit at 8.49 am local time. It was followed around 20 minutes later by two aftershocks, Xinhua said. By noon 6 people were reported dead in Jiujiang county, while 247 were injured, 8000 houses had collapsed and 29,000 were damaged, Xinhua said. The US Geological Survey said on its website (www.earthquake. usgs.gov) that the earthquake was “moderate” and of magnitude 5.5 at a depth of 10kms.In Ruicheng county, 6 people died, 130 were injured, 500 houses collapsed and 100,000 were damaged, Xinhua said. It was not clear where the other two victims were killed. Jiujiang’s earthquake management office said the epicentre of the quake lay somewhere near the boundary between the two counties.Wen Jiaboa pledges openness on spillHARBIN: China's premier promised aid to the thirsty city of Harbin on Saturday, where millions suffered a fourth day without mains water after a river chemical spill so big it threatens Russians hundreds of miles downstream. Wen Jiabao, visiting the northeastern city, also pledged openness about the incident on behalf of a communist leadership often accused at home and abroad of covering up the truth of disasters. A surge of toxic chemicals, pouring down the Songhua river after an explosion at a chemical plant, was expected to have passed through Harbin by Sunday, allowing officials to turn on the taps again for its 9 million people. REUTERS
