China's Sichuan Quake: Six Months Later

Sichuan, China
Photographs for TIME by Ian Teh / Panos

Beichuan Revisited
Surrounded by mountains, the town of Beichuan in Sichuan province, China, has always been vulnerable to earthquakes. The one that struck the southwest region of China on May 12, 2008, proved to be fatal. The entire town of Beichuan was flattened, and 15,000 perished. Still subject to frequent landsides, the town is still a no-go zone. Visitors climb the nearby hills to get a bird's eye view of disaster scene. Part of the old town has completely disappeared, buried deep under stones and mud.

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