Anxious Chinese Americans follow news of quake
In Monterey Park, Alhambra and San Gabriel, home to many immigrants from the affected area in Sichuan province, talk focuses on the fate of loved ones in China.
The devastating earthquake that struck China has come to dominate discussion on the streets of the San Gabriel Valley, which has one of the largest Chinese populations outside the mainland.
At the Szechwan Best restaurant in Alhambra, flat-screen televisions were tuned to Chinese TV news stations, where earthquake coverage dominated.
Waitress Xiao Xuemei, 50, said she got a call from friends at 2 a.m. telling her about the 7.9 quake, which was centered in Sichuan province in western China.
She immediately tried calling her family, but all cellphone coverage was down. She finally got through to her older sister in the Sichuan capital of Chengdu. Her sister said she fled her sixth-floor apartment amid violent shaking and was now camping on the street.
"We are very nervous. We are very worried because we are so far away," said Xiao, who left Sichuan three years ago for Alhambra. "All my family is in Chengdu."
Xiao and the other workers at the restaurant said they were trying to put the earthquake to the back of their minds so they could focus on the lunch rush -- but it was hard. Xiao said she planned to keep calling to China to get updates from her family.
Such concerns were expressed around the Chinese American strongholds of Monterey Park, Alhambra and San Gabriel. There was great concern about the death toll, which officials estimated to be at least 8,500.
Sichuan immigrant Annie Wang didn't know about the disaster until co-workers at her foot massage spa in San Gabriel switched on Chinese television and said, "Annie, your Sichuan had an earthquake."
Although all her immediate family has already moved to the United States, Wang said, her stomach sank as she thought about her friends and other relatives.
"I'm not very positive about the location," said Wang, 44, as she rubbed the feet of a client. "I think it's in the poorer areas. If so, my cousin goes out there often for work. I'm worried about my friends and classmates. I can only call them once I'm off work."
Wang, who has been in the U.S. for a year, says Los Angeles is home to many Sichuan immigrants. It's a community that mostly reflects the working-class character of the province. Many came to Southern California to work in restaurants and, like Wang, found jobs in the dozens of foot massage parlors that dot the San Gabriel Valley.
Chen Shijie, a spokesman for the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles, said his office had been flooded with calls from mostly overseas Chinese asking how to donate money to aid the disaster victims. The consulate also received a call from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's office expressing sympathy and an offer to help.
Chen suggested either contacting the Red Cross or sending money to the consulate.
"We will ensure it gets to the disaster area," he said.
Chinese American activist Sue Zhang said she had been on the phone with other community leaders all morning to plan a fundraising event. She hopes to announce a fundraising weekend concert soon, with proceeds going to quake victims.
david.pierson@latimes.com
