CHENGDU — State Councilor Wang Yong has stressed efforts to enhance disaster prevention to minimize the damage caused by natural disasters.

Wang, who heads the country's disaster-reduction work, made the remarks during his trip to the country's southwestern Sichuan province to research prevention and control work relating to forest fires, floods, droughts and earthquakes.

From May 12 to May 13, Wang visited forests, local communities, reservoirs, geological-disaster control sites and disaster-relief material warehouses to learn about disaster-prevention work in the province, as well as the progress on rectifying misconduct.

Noting the recent extreme weather and natural-disaster risks in certain regions, Wang called on local authorities and government departments to increase their efforts on disaster prevention and emergency response to prepare for major disasters.

Wang also attended an earthquake drill on May 14 in the city of Ya'an, stressing the need to remain alert to major earthquakes and strengthen resilience against great disasters for the benefit of the people.