In pictures: Quake recovery

Three days after a massive earthquake hit Sichuan province in China's south-west, the recovery operation continues.

Soldiers and rescue workers are trying to pluck dwindling numbers of survivors from the rubble. More than 20,000 people are missing, feared buried.

This list of names of survivors at a hospital in Deyang will bring relief to some. But hopes fade for many who remain missing - such as this couple, whose picture is pinned to the notice board.

The scale of the damage - shown in this view of Yingxiu, Wenchuan county - presents a huge challenge even for China's mighty army, and people have been asked to donate basic equipment.

The public response has been impressive. Queues of blood donors formed in Chinese cities, and a fundraising drive has reportedly collected 877m yuan ($125m) so far.

Strains in ties with China's neighbours have been put aside - at least temporarily - with Taiwan and Japan contributing money, equipment and expertise.

But the response makes little difference for some - such as these parents, who have just identified the body of their child at the ruins of a school in Dujiangyan.

While for others - such as this young boy, Zhang Jiachi, who lost both arms when his school collapsed in Shifang - the life ahead now looks very different.

Many who had little to begin with, now have nothing.

Amid the frenetic activity, there is time to mourn as the bodies continue to come.