The official death toll from the earthquake in China has risen to just under 29-thousand but many experts are now predicting that the final death toll will surpass the government estimate of 50-thousand.

Peter Cave reports.

"Statistics released late on Saturday by the Chinese government show the scale of damage and misery caused by the earthquake which struck last Monday. Apart from those who have died more than 116-thousand people have been hospitalised, almost sixteen million homes have been seriously damaged and more than three million have been flattened. At least ten thousand people are known to have been buried by rubble and on Saturday just seven people were pulled out alive."

Chinese state media now says 63 people were pulled out of the rubble alive on saturday, revising it from the earlier figure of seven.

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