On the morning of May 16^th, an Earthquake Relief Professional Technical Volunteer Service Team consisted of 6 experts in the Civil Engineering Field was formed after receiving the letter from the Ministry of Construction of China. As the Emergency Building Assessing Experts Panel dispatched by the Ministry of Construction, the team set off at 5:00pm that day from Pudong Airport. This team would rush to the front line of disaster relief and provided intelligence support for the rescuing and relief work.

    This panel of 6 experts was led by Prof. Lv Xilin, vice director of State Key Laboratory for Disaster Reduction in Civil Engineering and head of the Research Institute of Structural Engineering and Disaster Reduction of Tongji University. The other 5 members were Li Jianzhong, an expert in the field of seismic prevention for bridges, Tang Yiqun, an expert in the field of geological engineering, Li Xing, a building-detecting expert, Liu Wei, a lifeline engineering expert and Ren Xiaosong, an expert specialized in building aseismatic technology. They would arrive at Sichuan, and then go into the most serious disaster-stricken area as the arrangement of Ministry of Construction and Construction Office of Sichuan province. Before leaving, the team members brought the tents as the required by Ministry of Construction.

    After the earthquake in Sichuan, every teachers and students threw themselves into the specific disaster relief work actively. Besides the donation of money and goods, they prepared to offer intelligence help for the disaster relief work by mean of their disciplinary advantage. At noon, a ceremony was held in Tongji to declare the establishment of Earthquake Relief Professional Technical Volunteer Service Team.

    This team was consisted by experts, professors, excellent graduate students and PhD students in the disaster-relief related fields, which covered 12 specialized fields: disaster prevention and reduction of buildings, structural engineering, transportation, roads construction mechanics, bridges construction mechanics, geology, geotechnical engineering, tunnel construction mechanics, environmental engineering, architectural planning, psychological guidance and disease control. Team of every field was lad by distinguished professors and scholars among whom there were Sun Lijun, Li Jie, Fang Shouen, Qian Feng, Zhao chunfeng, Zhao Xudong, Li Fengting, Li Jue, Ding Wenqi, etc. Up to the present time, more than 30 experts and professors and 100 graduate students have applied to join the volunteer service team.

    The expert panel set off this afternoon was the advance team of the volunteer service team. Later our university would organized professional technical service team to the front line of disaster relief according to the requirement of the disaster relief responding to the calling of the country.

    It was known that, the related leaders and experts in the University have sent messages to the Ministry of Communication, Ministry of Construction, Construction Office of Sichuan Province after the earthquake expressed sincerely their willing to offer voluntary service for the emergency disaster relief and reconstruction work later. The day before, the University sent telegram to Sichuan Municipal Government to expressed our sincere greetings and the willing to dispatch experts panel to offer free assistance in Sichuan. Leaders of Architecture & Urban Planning College sent message to the Construction Office of Sichuan expressing the desire to offer emergency planning and help the reconstruction work for the most serious disaster-stricken area-Wenchuan, Beichuan and Doujiang Weir after the disaster. At the present time, related teachers and students have organized high-level designing team and begun to collect and analysis the prior information.

    Vice-present Chen Xiaolong, Zhao Jianfu and Vice Party Secretary Lu Minxun, Ma Jinming, Jiang Fuming were present at the establishment ceremony. During the ceremony, the university leaders together with the representatives of teachers and students from every college opened up their wallets and donated money in succession on the spot.