BEIJING, April 25 (Xinhuanet) -- The destruction brought about by the earthquake apart, the earthquake zone is now facing the threat of secondary disasters.

A lot like the initial disaster, these can strike suddenly and without warning. But there is a possibility they can be predicted. Yin Yueping, an expert from the Geological Disaster Emergency Management Office of the Ministry of Land Resources, says that the altitude difference in some areas in the disaster zone is more than 4,700 meters, which is more than the altitude difference between Beijing and Tibet. This means that the danger from landslides and shifting rock is greatly magnified.

Also, the fact that a lot of the areas in the disaster zone are covered by thick vegetation means that visually detecting a disaster in time may prove very difficult.

Therefore, as per Mr. Yin, besides field visits by rescue teams, some high-tech means such as remote sensing techniques and surveillance by unmanned aerial vehicles are also needed. Mr. Yin said that 10 towns in the quake hit counties of Lushan, Baoxing and Tianquan were the focus of this important work.

(Source: CNTV.cn)