Denver resident Kaijia Gentry has at least seven family members living in the earthquake-damaged city of Chengdu and said she awoke to the news of the earthquake deeply worried for their safety.
“This morning, I got the news, and immediately I tried to reach my family,” Gentry said. “The phone calls did not go through, so I tried sending them a text message asking, ‘Are you okay.’ ”
Gentry said three family members responded, yet she could understand only one message, sent in English.
“I had three responses, two in Chinese and one in English, but I couldn’t read the Chinese on my phone,” she said. “At least when I got a response, I knew they were alive.”
The message sent to Gentry in English read “Nothing serious,” so she said she felt assured that her mother and siblings were safe.
University of Colorado alumna Julia Xu of Louisville was awakened at 6 a.m. by a friend who told her about the quake.
“I’ve been trying to contact my family since 6:30 a.m.,” Xu said. “By 9 a.m., I was able to reach some of them through their cellphones, and they all were OK.”
Xu said she is relying on other family to update her on the status of those affected by the earthquake. She said she heard from a family member that some of her cousins had left the area for the mountains, while others are hoping to stay with relatives living in the countryside.
“I don’t know why my cousin was heading for the mountains, but I heard it was because there was dangerous rains and mudslides, and that a major chemical plant released toxic chemicals into the city,” Xu said. “My parents . . . are living in their car.”
As for local relief efforts, Mei Cheng, the president and co-founder of the Great Wall Chinese Academy in Denver, said she has begun to put together a fund for relatives of local families affected by the earthquake.
“We’ve already set up a cash donation, but at this point, we don’t know how many families have been affected by this yet,” Cheng said of the 100 Chinese families enrolled in her academy. “This morning, I’ve talked to several local families who are directly connected to Chengdu, but we are still in the process of contacting everyone.”
Anna Haislip: 303-954-1638 or ahaislip@denverpost.com
