China News Service, Wuhan, February 5th: "Break the ice" by directly attacking the snowstorm in Wuhan
Author Lu Qi
"Each of the 8 sets of turnouts in Jinghe moves back and forth." In the early morning of February 4, at Jinghe Station on Line 1 in Dongxihu District, Wuhan City, Guan Zhipeng, the head of the subway signal work shift, conducted a status test on the 8 sets of turnback switches at the station. After confirming that it was normal, he wiped the ice off his eyebrows and the brim of his hat, feeling relieved. At 6 a.m. that day, all Wuhan rail transit networks started operating on time, and all entrances and exits were open normally.
In the early morning of the 4th, Wuhan Metro technicians removed ice from the switches. Photo by San Qidou
In the past few days, Wuhan has experienced rare complex weather phenomena such as freezing rain, ice pellets, and sleet. The Wuhan Meteorological Observatory has successively issued orange warning signals for road icing. The local emergency response to low-temperature rain, snow and freezing disasters has been upgraded to Level III. Under the cover of ice and snow, various departments in Wuhan jointly carried out "ice-breaking" operations to melt snow to protect the smooth and orderly operation of the city.
On the Yangtze River Bridge, the Wuchang Urban Management Bridge Cleaning Team used large-scale snow removal equipment for the first time. "This snow removal truck can load 15 tons to 20 tons of snow melting agent at a time, and its continuous operation capacity is twice that of an ordinary spreader." Wuchang Urban Management Bridge Cleaning Team Hu Tao, assistant to the team leader, said that the Yangtze River Bridge is one of the important river-crossing channels in Wuhan. The team members worked all night to remove ice and shovel snow to ensure that vehicles can pass safely during working hours.
Sanitation workers are shoveling snow. Photo by Lu Qi
When we arrived at Luoshi Road, we saw a yellow signboard that read "Driving with caution in rainy and snowy weather" hanging on the overpass. There were plowed snow left on both sides of the road, and passing vehicles were driving slowly. On the overpass, sanitation worker Lu Xiuyong was shoveling away ice and snow and knocking ice off branches. "Because the snow continues to fall, it must be removed in time," Lu Xiuyong said.
The police pushed the vehicle off the snowy road. Photo courtesy of Wuhan Traffic Police
At the Sangong Road bus station on Heping Avenue, two buses were unable to move forward due to slippery roads. Policeman Zuo Long on duty at the intersection came to help with his team members. Passengers on the bus also got off the bus and pushed the buses forward together; Jiangxia District 314 On provincial highways, firefighters cleared branches broken by ice and snow on the road to restore traffic; outside the Hankou Railway Station and subway station, staff member Yang Huaqin replaced soaked anti-skid sacks to prevent pedestrians from slipping due to ice.
Sanitation workers are laying sacks. Photo by Lu Qi
Freezing, rainy and snowy weather is also a "big test" for citizens' "vegetable basket" supply. Visiting Baishazhou Farmers Market, Wushang Supermarket, and Zhongbai Warehouse, we learned that the market currently has sufficient supply, complete vegetable varieties, and stable prices. The relevant person in charge of the Sijimei Farmers Market said that most of the vegetables come from Shandong, Hainan, Yunnan and other places, with a daily turnover of more than 10,000 tons.
Due to low temperatures, ice and snow, crops and agricultural facilities were damaged to varying degrees. The Wuhan Municipal Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs has established a guidance group for disaster prevention and reduction. Specialists in planting, aquatic products, animal husbandry, and agricultural machinery have gone deep into the front lines of agricultural production to provide guidance on disaster prevention and reduction. "We used drones to spread snow-melting agent on the multi-span greenhouses. After more than an hour, the snow in the greenhouses began to melt into water, and 70% of all greenhouses were saved." said Wang Jianbing, head of the Golden Huinong Ecological Agriculture Professional Cooperative in Dongxihu District, Wuhan City.
The snow in Wuhan is still falling, and passers-by are in a hurry. "I saw that netizens took pictures of railway workers still clearing ice and snow on the tracks until after one o'clock in the morning. Everyone is working hard," said citizen Wang Xinshuang. (over)