The Chinese government has begun sending in teams of undertakers to supervise the grim work of disposing of almost 23-thousand bodies already pulled from the rubble after this week's catastrophic earthquake.

Peter Cave reports from Beijing.

"With temperatures forecast to rise to close to thirty degrees in the earthquake area in coming days the huge numbers of decaying corpses pose a threat to the health of five million survivors who have been left homeless. As well as teams of undertakers water purification engineers have become a priority as well. 'The water is the easiest way to transfer the infectious diseases. First thing is to prevent them from the polluted drinking waters.' Dr Chu Yuan from the Chengdu Military hospital in Sichuan."

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