Rescuers hiked into neighboring Baoxing county after its roads were cut off, reaching it overnight, state media reported.

NPR: China Rushes Relief After Sichuan Quake Kills 180

One of the hardest hit areas was Baoxing county, where almost all buildings had collapsed, including many that were built after the 2008 earthquake, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.

WSJ: Rescuers Work to Reach Quake Area

Rescue teams had already reached the remote villages in mountainous Baoxing County on foot, but landslides were blocking access to aid trucks and preventing some of the casualties from being brought out.

BBC: China quake: Rescue teams blast roads amid aftershocks

China Youth Daily says the country must learn from Japan's earthquake-resistant building designs after almost all the buildings in Baoxing county in Ya'an, including newer earthquake-proof houses, were badly damaged in the quake.

BBC: China media: Quake donations debate

"I dare not go anywhere near a mountainside, " a woman named Zhu was quoted by Agence-France Presse news agency, in the village of Baoxing, centre of Lushan county, as saying.

BBC: China quake: Rescue teams blast roads amid aftershocks