China says over 70,000 dead or missing from quake China raised the number of dead or missing from a devastating earthquake to more than 70,000 on Tuesday, as rescuers found another survivor eight days after the huge tremor hit. China getting back on its feet as weather improves The thunder of firecrackers ushered in the Year of the Rat on Thursday, but millions of Chinese were spending a cold holiday as repair teams battled to restore power knocked out by the worst snow storms in a century.