Strange things were happening in the countryside of northeastern Hebei. For several days，the water in the village wells rose and fell，rose and fell. There were deep cracks that appeared in the well walls. At least one well had some smelly gas coming out of it. Chickens and even pigs were too nervous to eat，and dogs refused to go inside buildings. Mice ran out of the fields looking for places to hide，and fish jumped out of the water. At about 3：00 a.m., on 28 July 1976，bright lights were seen in the sky outside the city of Tangshan and loud noises were heard. But the city’s one million people were asleep as usual that night.
河北省东北部的农村地区怪事连连。一连几天，村里的井水升升降降，起起伏伏，井壁上出现了深深的裂缝，至少有一口水井冒出臭气。鸡甚至猪都焦躁不安，不愿进食；狗拒绝进入屋内。老鼠跑到田外，寻找藏身之所；鱼儿也跳出水面。1976年7月28日凌晨3:00左右，唐山城外的天空中出现了耀眼亮光，接着又传出巨大的声响。然而，那天晚上城里的百万居民仍像往常一样沉睡在梦乡。
At 3:42 a.m., everything began to shake. It seemed as if the world were coming to an end! Eleven kilometres directly below the city, one of the most deadly earthquakes of the 20th century had begun, a quake that even caused damage more than 150 kilometres away in Beijing. Nearly one third of the whole nation felt it! A huge crack, eight kilometres long and 30 metres wide, cut across houses, roads, and waterways. Hard hills of rock became rivers of dirt. In less than one minute, a large city lay in ruins. Two thirds of the people who lived there were dead or injured. Thousands of children were left without parents. The number of people who were killed or badly injured in the quake was more than 400,000.
凌晨3: 42，万物开始摇晃，仿佛世界末日即将来临！在城市正下方的11千米处，20世纪伤害最严重之一的地震爆发了，远在150多千米以外的北京都受到了这场地震的破坏，全国几乎三分之一的地区均有震感！一条8千米长、30米宽的巨大裂缝横切房屋、道路和水路。坚硬的石山变成了泥沙流。在不到一分钟的时间里，一座大城市沦为废墟。城里三分之二的居民在地震中死亡或受伤，数以千计的孩子失去了父母。在此次地震中丧亡或身受重伤的人数超过了40万。
Everywhere survivors looked，there was nothing but ruins. Nearly everything in the city was destroyed. About 75 percent of the city’s factories and buildings，90 percent of its homes，and all of its hospitals were gone. Bricks covered the ground like red autumn leaves，but no wind could blow them away. Most bridges had fallen or were not safe to cross. The railway tracks were now useless pieces of metal. Tens of thousands of cows，hundreds of thousands of pigs，and millions of chickens were dead. Sand now filled the wells instead of water. People were inshock—and then，later that afternoon，another big quake shook Tangshan again. Even more buildings fell down. Water，food，and electricity were hard to get. People began to wonder how long the disaster would last.
