As news of the tragedy broke, volunteer rescue teams, charity societies and the civic-minded rushed to Ya'an with relief supplies, but experts warned that gestures of goodwill and untrained people going headlong into disaster areas could actually hinder rather then help the emergency services.

Residents in Zhenjiang city, Jiangsu province, held a vigil on Saturday night to mourn the victims and to collect donations for relief work. Wen Wen / Xinhua

Qin Wei, secretary-general of the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, said their first aid group has been dispatched to the quake-hit area with money and supplies worth about 2 million yuan ($323,614).

"My colleagues took quilts, medicine, the daily necessities, and money. Cash is necessary to buy food and drinking water on the way to the quake area, since food can easily go off if taken from Beijing." he said.

The group will also make an assessment of casualties and damage in the area. Wang Xudong, a volunteer, arranged a flight from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, to Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Saturday evening and road transport to Lushan country in Ya'an.

Wang is from the Dishui Public Welfare Association, an NGO.

"I wanted to help once I arrive if I can't help directly, I'm free to do logistic work" said Wang, who spent six months as a volunteer in Wenchuan in the aftermath of the 2008 quake.

NGOs in disaster areas generally support military rescue work, help local government with relief supplies and organize donations, said Gao Sifang, one of the organizers of China Heart Association in Beichuan. The NGO was established after the Wenchuan earthquake five years ago.

"We sent two teams from nearby Beichuan and Mianyang counties," said Gao, who is organizing relief supplies for delivery on Monday.

However, Chang Liqiao from the NGO Disaster Preparedness Center arrived in Ya'an on Saturday afternoon and told China Daily volunteers sometimes are not even allowed access to disaster areas.

Foreign NGOs needs permission from the government to get into a disaster site, said a spokeswoman for Habitat for Humanity China Shanghai.

Howard Liu Hung To, Oxfam's China program director, visited Ya'an in 2008.

"It is a poverty-stricken area. The northwest part of the city is mountainous and has steep cliffs. There is only one major highway connecting Ya'an to the outside world, and the road could be more dangerous after the quake, so rescue workers should watch out," he said.

Liu urged grassroots societies and volunteers not to rush to the site, unless they can make "a professional and comprehensive contribution".

"I hope grassroots volunteers don't just rush in, since that may cause further problems," he said.