Special report: Strong Earthquake Jolts SW China

    CHENGDU, May 20 (Xinhua) -- One of the three giant pandas previously reported as missing from the Wolong breeding center in southwestern Sichuan Province has returned safely and two others remain missing.

    Staff members with the China Wolong Giant Panda Protection and Research Center, where more than 60 pandas were raised, are searching for the two missing pandas, Xiong Beirong, an official with the provincial forestry bureau told Xinhua.

    Xiong said the two missing were "very likely to be alive" though aftershocks could almost be felt every few hours in the mountainous area, which is about 30 kilometers from the epicenter of the 8-magnitude quake.

    "Both pandas are adults and they are more capable to escape from dangers than younger ones," she said. "We hope the two missing pandas are as lucky as their peers."

    Two pandas were injured when their cells collapsed in the quake. Six others disappeared from the Wolong center after the quake, but four of them have come back safely over the past few days.

    In a notice posted on the ministry's website, Jia Zhibang, Minister of Forestry, asked local branches to put more punch into the monitoring of wild giant pandas and extend timely rescue to those injured and ailing.

    The conditions of wild pandas had remained unknown after the 8.0-magnitude struck Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces, where more than 1,590 giant pandas lived in the wild.

    About 75 percent of the total, or more than 1,200 wild pandas, are living in southwestern Sichuan, where the quake was centered.

    The quake killed five staff in the Wolong center and left all the panda houses severely damaged. Of the total 32 panda houses, 14 were destroyed and the others were severely damaged.

    The other pandas raised in the center, including 14 cubs born last year, were safe, said Xiong. They were safely kept in rebuilt panda houses, though simple and crowded.

    Jia had called on experts to research into plans so that these pandas could be properly evacuated. The central television had reported the giant pandas in the center were shocked in the powerful quake and became reluctant to move.

    Local government has sent bamboo, apples, and veterinary medicine for the pandas, as well as food and the tents urgently needed by the staff of the center.

    More than 60 pandas at another breeding center in Chengdu were reported safe after the quake. Another eight pandas at a preserve in Ya'an, about an hour's drive west of Chengdu, were reportedly safe as well.

    The Wolong center is deep in the hills north of Chengdu along awinding, two-lane road that has been partially blocked by landslides.

    Xiong called for panda lovers and volunteers to postpone their plans to visit Wolong as the food supply there was very limited.

    "We appreciate their help, but there are more than 6,000 people here, including villagers, tourists, rescuers and Wolong staff workers, and the food and water are limited," said Xiong.

    The quake, centered on Wenchuan County in northeastern part of Sichuan, affected many parts of the country. More than 34,000 people were confirmed dead nationwide as of Tuesday noon, while the final death toll is expected to exceed 50,000.