12:19 pm
First images of the strongly hit Wenchuan are sent back for the first time through satellite. The camera on a helicopter shows piles of devastated houses in remote villages near the Wenchuan county.
Day Four (May 15)
6 pm
Thirty-one Japanese rescuers head for Chengdu.
7:25 pm
China's relief headquarters estimates the final death toll would exceed 50,000.
Day Five (May 16)
10:43 am
President Hu Jintao arrives in Mianyang, one of the worst-hit cities, by plane, as rescuers continue to look for survivors.
Day Six (May 17)
Afternoon
More than 6 billion yuan ($860 million) from home and abroad is collected by the central government for quake relief.
(China Daily May 18, 2008)