BEIJING, April 21 (Xinhua) -- Electricity supply has been partly resumed in a county isolated in the earthquake in southwest China's Sichuan Province, China's largest power distributor said Sunday.
An emergency team from the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) arrived at Baoxing, a county neighboring the epicenter of the 7.0-magnitude quake, by a roundabout route on Sunday and restored power supply to more than 1,000 households in two towns, sources at the SGCC told Xinhua.
The county had been blacked out since a 7.0-magnitude quake jolted the neighboring Lushan County of Sichuan's Ya'an City at 8:02 a.m. Saturday Beijing time.
More emergency teams are on their way to Baoxing to put the local power network back to use, the sources said.
A quake-damaged section of a highway that connects Baoxing with Lushan has been repaired on Sunday, making it easier for rescue workers and relief materials to reach the county, according to the Ministry of Transport.
So far, 26 people in Baoxing were confirmed dead and about 2,500 injured, county head Ma Jun told Xinhua on Sunday morning.
The total death toll in the earthquake has risen to 186 so far, with 21 people reported missing and 11,393 others injured, according to latest statistics gathered by the provincial emergency response command center.