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Vanuatu quake survivors recall moment disaster struck as rescue work continues

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Vanuatu quake survivors recall moment disaster struck as rescue work continues

2024-12-19 16:05 Last Updated At:16:37

Local residents in disaster-hit Vanuatu have recalled the moment a devastating earthquake struck on Tuesday, inflicting widespread damage and causing dozens of casualties, as rescue and repair work continues in the Pacific Island nation.

The 7.3-magnitude earthquake which hit on Tuesday lunchtime has left at least 14 people dead, including two Chinese nationals, and injured hundreds more, with authorities concerned the toll could rise further.

With the epicenter being just 30 km from the capital Port Vila, the quake has resulted in significant damage, triggering landslides and causing many buildings to collapse, while multiple aftershocks have also been reported.

As residents begin come to terms with the scale of the disaster, a local survivor named Norman Ben Daniel said he had never seen such a catastrophe before in his lifetime.

"It's our first time [to see this]. Now I'm 52 years old, I've never seen this kind of earthquake in my life. So this is the first time. So, it was very shocking, made people cry. All the mothers cried, the pikinini (children) cried, and everybody was confused," he said.

Daniel also said that rescue efforts are ongoing in Vanuatu as local volunteers have come forward to help repair roads after the disaster blocked basic transportation links.

"All our roads from the north valley, in my village to Port Vila, it's 41 kilometers to Port Vila, all was damaged. But we are [grateful to the] very good, some good people with their diggers, private [ones who] came and cleared the road so we can now just follow [the road] because access is very important. We have to make access to Port Vila, to the hospital. Because this is our main target that we have to do in some [of the rescue] work. It's our first priority," he said.

Meanwhile, an overseas Chinese resident in Vanuatu also shared her experience of the terrifying moment the quake struck on Tuesday, and said tremors have continued to rock the island nation following the main disaster.

"It happened when I was cooking. At first, I thought it was a normal minor earthquake. But then it got more and more violent. I had to run and ran outside. When I came back, I found my home in this state. After yesterday's earthquake, there were several rounds of aftershocks, constant aftershocks. There have been several aftershocks that shook things quite intensely. Now, I actually can hear a lot of alarms outside. Rescue efforts are still ongoing," said Ling Dang, a Chinese resident who is sojourned in Port Vila.

Vanuatu’s government has declared a seven-day state of emergency following the deadly quake and has also requested international assistance to help respond to the disaster.

Vanuatu quake survivors recall moment disaster struck as rescue work continues

Vanuatu quake survivors recall moment disaster struck as rescue work continues

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Trade ties between Macao, mainland get stronger over past 25 years

2024-12-19 16:28 Last Updated At:16:37

The trade between the mainland and Macao has grown stronger in the past 25 years since Macao returned to China and the special administrative region was established, jumping 4.3 times from that in 1999 to reach 3.84 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, the Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday in a statement.

The ministry has been facilitating the economic exchanges and trade between the two sides to bolster the economic development and improve people's wellbeing in Macao.

In terms of the trade in goods, the mainland has implemented zero tariffs on all products originating in Macao to support the development of traditional industries in Macao.

The service trade has also seen substantial growth, as marked by the influx of mainland tourists to visit Macao. From 2004 to 2023, about 310 million mainland visitors traveled to Macao, according to the ministry.

The ministry also said that the mainland increased the duty-free allowance for travelers entering the mainland from Macao from 5,000 yuan (685.06 U.S. dollars) to 12,000 yuan in July, to boost tourism spending in Macao.

Investment between the two sides have also been robust. As of October, the mainland has attracted 23.93 billion U.S. dollars in direct investment from Macao while investing 14.19 billion U.S. dollars in Macao.

The bilateral economic and trade cooperation mechanism has been continuously improved, and the two-way opening level has been continuously upgraded, with the implementation of a series of policies, the ministry said.

Since 2003 when the mainland and Macao signed the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) and its series of agreements, the two sides have fully liberalized trade in goods, basically liberalized trade in services, and provided comprehensive protection for investment. Economic and technological cooperation has expanded to broader areas as well.

The release of the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the overall development plan for the Guangdong-Macao in-depth cooperation zone in Hengqin have supported Macao to align with the national development strategy and better integrate into the overall development of the country.

Looking ahead, the ministry will continue to foster economic collaboration between the mainland and Macao and support Macao to appropriately diversify its economy and maintain a long-term prosperity and stability.

Trade ties between Macao, mainland get stronger over past 25 years

Trade ties between Macao, mainland get stronger over past 25 years

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