The Chinese embassy staff in Algeria headed by Ambassador Wang Wangsheng went to the airport to see the rescuers off.

It was the first time that China sent a rescue team to a foreign country hit by natural disasters since its founding in 1949."The event itself manifested that China has obtained more economic strength and further social development," Xu Deshi, deputy chief of the team, told Xinhua.

The Chinese International Search and Rescue (CISAR) team, made up of 30 rescuers, three sniffer dogs and supported by special equipment, arrived in Algiers on Saturday, three days after a 6.7-magnitude quake struck northern Algeria.

During the six-day operation under the coordination of the United Nations, CISAR successfully found a 12-year-old boy alive from the debris of a collapsed buildings in Dellys, 110 km east of Algiers, recovered four bodies from the wreckage, provided emergency treatment to nearly 170 local residents injured in the earthquake, and helped evaluate the anti-tremor capability of more than 40 houses.

Peng Bibo, a member of the team, said: "The world is a big family. We should help each others when precipitate disasters comeupon us."

"We are happy that we could retrieve some losses for the Algerian people, though they might be very small," Xia Hongliang, another teammate said.

About 38 international rescue teams, such as those from France, Spain, Italy, Russia, Morocco, and Japan, took part in the search and rescue operations in Algeria, among which about 30 teams have left.

(Xinhua News Agency May 30, 2003)