Death toll expected to top 80,000 in Chinese quake

The number of confirmed dead from the massive May 12 quake rose to 68,109 on Wednesday, up 1,000 from the day before, China's cabinet confirmed. Another 19,851 people are reported missing, and the government says it now fears the final death toll will be more than 80,000.

Survivors are struggling to find shelter. An estimated 15 million people have seen their homes reduced to rubble, or have been forced to abandon their homes due to fears of flooding and aftershocks. Roads and infrastructure are severely damaged.

The government says those trying to rebuild the country face a trying time due to the high level of damage, and the large number of survivors in need of immediate help.

"Due to the immense magnitude of loss resulted from the quake, production recovery and reconstruction of the quake-hit region will be arduous in the near future," China's National Development and Reform Commission said in a statement.

As China tries to recover, new threats continually emerge. On Tuesday, two large aftershocks struck the country, causing more than 420,000 houses to collapse in the Qingchuan county of the Sichuan province.

Meanwhile, 158,000 were forced to abandon their homes in dozens of villages downstream from the newly formed Tangjiashan lake. It was created when landslides triggered by the May 12 earthquake sent piles of debris into the Jianhe River, causing it to clog.

More than 1,800 police and soldiers arrived at the site Monday and have been working ever since to pull the debris from the lake, which contains 128 million cubic metres of water and is on the brink of overflowing.