China quake death toll hits 179 with thousands left homeless Rescuers struggled to rush supplies into the rural hills of China's Sichuan province after an earthquake left at least 179 people dead, more than 6700 injured and caused frightened survivors to spend a night in cars, tents and makeshift shelters. The earthquake on Saturday triggered landslides that cut off roads and disrupted phone and power connections in mountainous Lushan county, further south on the same fault line where a devastating quake wreaked widespread damage five years ago. Hardest hit were villages further up the valleys, where farmers grow rice, vegetables and corn on terraced fields. Fault lines: Rubble from a collapsed building in Chengdu after the earthquake hit Sichuan Province. Rescuers hiked into neighbouring Baoxing county after its roads were cut off, state media reported, while in Longmen village, authorities said nearly all the buildings had been destroyed in a frightening minute-long shaking. In the fog-covered town of Shuangli, corn farmer Zheng Xianlan said on Sunday the quake damaged her house. She then spent the night outdoors on a worn sofa. We don't know what we will do now," Zheng said, her eyes welling with tears. The government only brought one tent for the whole village so far, but that's not enough. Along the main roads, ambulances, fire engines and military trucks piled high with supplies waited in long lines, some turning back to try other routes. Rescuers dynamited boulders that had fallen across roads, and rains on Saturday slowed rescue work. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang flew into Ya'an by helicopter on Saturday afternoon to direct rescue efforts, the official Xinhua news agency reported. "The current priority is to save lives," Mr Li said, after visiting hospitals, tents and climbing on a pile of rubble to see the devastation. Xinhua, quoting the China Earthquake Administration, said at least 179 people had died, and more than 6700 were injured in the quake that measured 7.0. It struck shortly after 8am on Saturday, when many people were at home, sleeping or having breakfast.