Chinese soldiers walk over the ruins of collapsed buildings as they search for earthquake victims in Beichuan, in China's Sichuan province. (Greg Baker/Associated Press)

The Olympic torch relay will be suspended for three days in China as people mourn victims of last week's devastating earthquake in the southwestern province of Sichuan, organizers for the Games said on Sunday.

The suspension starts on Monday, one week after the 7.9-magnitude quake struck, organizers said in a statement.

Aside from the relay, the government is ordering all flags be flown at half-mast and that all public recreation activities be put on hold.

The country will observe three minutes of silence on Monday to honour the estimated 50,000 people who died in the quake.

In the disaster zone, efforts appeared to shift Sunday from searching for buried survivors to clearing corpses from shattered buildings as the government's official death toll rose to 32,476.

Another 220,109 people suffered injuries, according to a statement from the State Council, China's cabinet. The government has said it expects the final death toll will surpass 50,000.

With files from the Associated Press