Russia delivered Wednesday its second batch of humanitarian aid to China where a devastating earthquake has claimed nearly 15,000 lives in its southwestern Sichuan province, local media reported.

A cargo plane from the Emergency Ministry took off here Wednesday evening, carrying some 30 tons of aid to the quake-hit areas.

The first batch of aid arrived at Chengdu, capital of the Sichuan province, earlier Wednesday.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has sent a message of condolence to Chinese President Hu Jintao over the disastrous earthquake and expressed a willingness to offer humanitarian aid.

The earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale, rocked southwestern China, centering in Sichuan province, Monday afternoon.

Chinese rescuers including tens of thousands of troops have rushed to the mountainous region to help the victims out of the debris.

(Xinhua News Agency May 15, 2008)