CHENGDU, April 27 (Xinhua) -- Public mourning was held on Saturday morning in southwest China's Sichuan Province for those who died in a 7.0-magnitude quake a week ago.

The public mourning began with all transportation vehicles sounding their sirens at 8:02 a.m., the time the devastating earthquake hit on April 20, and was followed by a silent tribute of 3 minutes.

The quake has claimed nearly 200 lives and destroyed about 126,000 homes, according to official figures.