The earthquake hit Chengdu, a city that is used as the gateway to Tibet.  This is where you come to join tours to Tibet.  I was in Chengdu the summer of 1999 with a student.  Situated in Sichuan province, it's a city famous for its teahouses and Panda bear reserves.  Now, it will be famous for the earthquake. 

This article from the New York Times describes the massive mobilization of Chinese soldiers into the area to help victims and to shore up the many dams that have been weakened by the quake.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/15/world/asia/15china.html?ex=1368590400&en=ddc0350b61cb3b3b&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

In the second page of the article, I was struck by this comparison:

Prime Minister Wen Jiabao was shown on state television Wednesday telling survivors that 100,000 soldiers, paramilitary troops and police officers would be involved in relief efforts.

For comparison, in 2005 the American federal and state governments dispatched about 50,000 members of the National Guard in eight days to areas ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. 

I remember the photos of New Orleans post Katrina.  I was shocked to see American citizens living in third world conditions.  Too little help was sent too late.  It was horrifying to all of us, and I remember thinking the Chinese press would be wagging their tongues about our failure to take care of our own citizens.  The Chinese propaganda machine did not have to exaggerate to paint a picture of American racism.