[Live Voice]
[Explanation] This is the scene of the closure of the Ciyao River breach in Pingyao County, Shanxi at 21:00 on the evening of October 7.
These fire commanders, singing in line, have been working in the flood for 8 hours.
At about 13:00 on October 7, Pingyao fire commanders who had just completed a rescue mission received an order on their way back: Ciyao River broke the embankment and immediately performed the task of blocking the breach.
52 fire commanders who had not had time to eat lunch went straight to the scene.
[Concurrent] Gong Yu, Captain of the Fire Rescue Brigade, Pingyao County, Shanxi Province
The location of the incident was far away from the main road, and the middle junction was a relatively narrow small dyke. Transportation vehicles could not reach the scene, and large machinery could not reach the scene.
Therefore, the wooden piles, steel pipes, sandbags, and cement used in our rescue are all carried manually from the road to the scene by carrying them on their shoulders, making it difficult to transport materials.
[Explanation] The straight line length of the Ciyao River breach is about 10 meters. Piles must be driven first and then sandbags must be filled.
Fire commanders jumped into the flood and lined up to deliver supplies.
In order to avoid standing in the flood for a long time and overstretching their physical strength, they carry out a rotation of launchers every half an hour.
The person who was replaced is responsible for delivering and transporting emergency supplies.
That night, the outdoor temperature had dropped to 9°C.
The commanders who had been immersed in the flood for a long time were drenched and shivered from the cold. They could even hear the sound of "fighting" between the upper and lower teeth.
[Concurrent] Gong Yu, Captain of the Fire Rescue Brigade, Pingyao County, Shanxi Province
The weather is relatively cold, because our entire operation is to piling into the water and filling sandbags. People are soaked in the water and there is no condition to change clothes.
It took a very long time, which put a great test on the physical fitness and endurance of the soldiers. For more than ten hours in a low temperature environment, there was no timely and effective material replenishment, and there was no comfortable place to keep warm.
We performed small jumps on the spot to keep warm.
[Explanation] At about 20 o'clock, the cement needed to complete the closure of the dam was being transported, and the firefighters were able to temporarily repair it.
Everyone sat in the mud, took off their rescue boots and socks, and wrapped their legs and feet with woven bags to keep warm.
[Concurrent] Gong Yu, Captain of the Fire Rescue Brigade, Pingyao County, Shanxi Province
Because I have been working for more than 8 hours, I was cold and hungry at this time, and there was nowhere to hide, and everyone was very tired.
I call on everyone to use the chorus method. One is to refresh ourselves, and the other is to cheer up ourselves, and also to show the positive energy of the fire rescue team to all of us participating in the rescue.
[Explanation] "Unity is strength", "Learning from Lei Feng's good example", "Strong Army Battle Hymn", every time the chorus finished a song, the commanders and fighters clapped collectively.
In the ensuing general attack, the firefighters lined up to speed up the pace of cement delivery.
Enthusiastic villagers brought biscuits, eggs and other food to the firefighters.
At about 1:30 on October 8th, the breach was successful.
At 3 o'clock, after 14 hours of operation, the firefighters gathered equipment and evacuated the scene.
Reporter Wang Huilin reports from Shanxi Jinzhong
Editor in charge: [Wang Kai]