Premier Wen Jiabao has been in Sichuan province at the epicenter of the earthquake. Before leaving the provincial capital Chengdu on Wednesday, he'd been overseeing rescue work in the counties of Beichuan and the worst-hit Wenchuan. The premier extended his condolences to the victims and ordered all the rescuers to do everything possible to save lives.

Beichuan county neighbors the epicenter of the massive quake. It was savaged on Monday.

2000 students were in class in this middle school when the quake struck.

Rescuers pulled 300 survivors from the rubble of 2 of the teaching buildings. Wen Jiabao ordered the workers to continue making all-out efforts.

Premier Wen said, "Saving lives is the key of our rescue work. We must dispatch rescuers to every affected county, village and scene. You must use the right methods in your work and make sure you have the right equipment."

Premier Wen said, "My fellow citizens, the government cares for your plight. about you. Your pain is our pain as well. We must remain confident of overcoming getting over the disaster as when confronting it. You take care of your children. Reorganize your lives to meet this challenge and arrange your life properly. The future is ahead. There is still a long way to go. We are here. We can and will rebuild our homes."

As he left Beichuan, Premier Wen met a volunteer team from the United States. They are members of "Heart to Heart International." Wen Jiabao expressed his gratitude.

Premier Wen said, "First of all, on behalf of the Chinese government, I appreciate the support from the government and people of the United States. The earthquake has caused severe losses, but the Chinese government has organized relief work with all efforts."

Wen Jiabao also briefed the American volunteers on the overall rescue work.

Brian Robinson, China Rep. of HIH International, said, "We hope to cooperate with the government in our efforts. Local people have been severely hit by the quake. We want to cooperate in an organized and coordinated manner."

Wen Jiabao then left Beichuan for the worst-hit Wenchuan on Wednesday afternoon.

He went to see survivors and the injured as soon as he landed at the epicenter. He promised the government will do everything it can to save lives and help the devastated town recover.

Premier Wen said, "Wenchuan is not forgotten by the central government. We will rescue all the survivors. If roads are blocked, we will use planes to take the injured to treatment. We're doing our best to get more planes. We evacuated over 50 injured people this morning. We will continue our efforts to save more lives. And we are trying to repair all the damaged highways to help rebuilding the area. "

Rescue teams and military personnel are now deployed in all the earthquake-affected areas.

(CCTV May 16, 2008)