Beijing's initial response to the quake was surprisingly quick, adds Gu Linsheng, a researcher with Tsinghua University's Emergency Management Research Center.

"What strikes me the most is that the response is really, really fast," he said.

Gu believes China's centralized government proves it is at an advantage in such times because it can mobilize manpower and resources at a moment's notice.

By the end of May 14, the third day after the quake struck, a total of 100,000 PLA troops and armed police were sent to stricken Sichuan Province.

Also the first batch of 100 elite soldiers were parachuted on Wednesday afternoon to the previously cut-off Maoxian County, which is close to the epicenter. The parachutists landed safely at 12:20 pm.

Wednesday evening the State Council ordered the deployment of 90 more helicopters for rescue missions in the province, bringing the total number of rescue helicopters to 110.

The timely disclosure of information during the earthquake has lent a strong hand to the disaster relief.

Within hours, the State Seismological Bureau and the local seismological departments held several press conferences to keep the media and public informed.

After the major earthquake, several cities such as Beijing, Chongqing and Shanghai were clouded by rumors of possible strong aftershocks. The local seismological bureau refuted the rumors in one or two hours through the media. As a result, residents' lives and work soon restored to normal.

China's official media also responded quickly. They dispatched reporters to affected areas, broadcasting and relaying pictures and stories.

The confirmed national death toll reached 14,866 by 2 pm Wednesday, nearly all of them in Sichuan, according to the temporary disaster relief headquarters headed by Premier Wen.

AUTHOR：