Photographs by Leo Chen for Newsweek.com
The name of Sichuan province has become synonymous with tragedy after the May 12 earthquake took the lives of more than 40,000 people. But before the quake, the region was probably better known as home to China’s largest breeding center for its endangered wild pandas. Not surprisingly, the fate of the bears took a backseat to the ghastly human suffering. But as hopes faded for survivors and authorities were forced to shift from rescue to recovery, Chinese conservationists turned their attention to the iconic creatures at the Wolong Conservation and Research Center.
Photographer Leo Chen was one of those who set off to help the bears, joining a group of local volunteers to deliver supplies in a tortuous 11-hour drive over what used to be a winding two-lane road. No fairy-tale endings waited at their destination. Forty-seven local residents, including five Wolong staffers, were killed; 35 were seriously injured and 66 were missing. But Chen did find that almost all of the center’s 130 pandas had survived. Two pandas remain missing, but staffers are hopeful that they--like four others found after the quake--will eventually find their way home. Here are some of Chen’s exclusive images of the pandas at play in the midst of destruction.
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