2008 Sichuan earthquake still fresh in minds of Hong Kong volunteers 10 years later
Timothy To Wing-ching’s life would change forever after he travelled to the devastated province with a group of counsellors to help victims
A young girl was sobbing uncontrollably when Timothy To Wing-ching spotted her inside a Chinese military camp set up for victims of the deadly 2008 Sichuan earthquake.
The Hongkonger and his group of 12 other counselling professionals had arrived in Wenchuan county about two weeks after the magnitude 8 earthquake devastated Sichuan, killing more than 80,000 people, injuring 370,000 and leaving 4.8 million people homeless.
Ten years later, To, now 46, remembered how he thought at the time he would be like “superman”, flying into the quake-stricken province like a superhero to help victims just when they needed it the most.
But that fantasy, he said, was short-lived.
“We were watching the news in Sichuan one day and the report was about how the children victims didn’t have shoes and backpacks. The next morning, we went to a market and bought some shoes and bags. We then went to a camp to distribute the items,” he said.
