6 | DISCOVER SHANXI Friday, March 13, 2020 CHINA DAILY Millions volunteer help in fight against virus
Distribution of urgent supplies, free therapy and tutorship among the services offered by Shanxi residents
By YUAN SHENGGAO
More than 3 million people in North China’s Shanxi province spent their “Volunteers Day” by contributing to the battle against the novel coronavirus pneumonia. From left: Volunteers in Pingcheng district, Datong, carry groceries to families quarantined in their homes. WANG ZHONGXUN / FOR CHINA DAILY Volunteers in the provincial capital of March 5 was designated by the Taiyuan disinfect parcels that have arrived at a residential community. RUAN YANG / FOR CHINA DAILY Shanxi government as the local vol unteers day, to mark local people’s efforts to make society better. To solve this problem, he hired a Li Shuanlong, a 73yearold veter bought masks and distributed them health knowledge and offering psy iPads and smartphones to the fami Since the outbreak of the epidem fleet of buses to send local laborers an barber, was the first to answer to the elderly for free. chological services in a residential lies, helping the children access var ic in late December, these volunteers to their work sites. the call. However, dispatching masks is community in the city. ious online lessons. have engaged in various jobs, To date, more than 700 local “At this moment, people working the easiest part of the volunteers’ As part of local epidemic preven In addition, they worked as tutors including distributing preventative workers have been driven to desti on the front line battling the epi work. tion measures, schools in Shanxi for these students, helping them to supplies, offering psychological ser nations in Tianjin municipality and demic are the most respectable,” Li Every early morning, when peo are still locked down and students get familiar with all of the education vices, advocating new policies on Jiangsu and Anhui provinces. said. ple are still asleep, Wu and his col are required to study online at al apps and answering their ques disease prevention and control, and During the past month, it has not “I’m glad to serve them with my leagues are busy disinfecting the home. tions relating to their curriculum. maintaining order for local commu been easy for people to have their skills,” he added. residential communities of their In Pingcheng district of Datong According to the Shanxi Provin nities. hair cut because most barber shops Wu Liang is the chief of a volun neighborhood. city, staff members of a local public cial Department of Civil Affairs, He Wenyong from Linfen city is are not open. teers organization in Taiyuan devot In Changzhi city, university stu service center noticed that equip there are more than 3.13 million vol a boss of a labor service company. In Changzhi, the local volunteers ed to helping senior citizens and dents, especially those majoring in ment for online education was not unteers and more than 26,900 vol He has been concerned about association has called for barbers to underprivileged people. medical sciences, used their knowl available to some impoverished unteer organizations in the local workers who were unable to volunteer their services to medical He noticed that many seniors edge to help residents better protect families. province. These people are playing return to work, either in Shanxi or staff and others working for disease were not able to get health supplies themselves from the epidemic. To tackle the problem, the center an important role in local epidemic other parts of the country, due to prevention and control. including face masks, disinfectant Zhang Ruichong is a gradefour recruited 36 local university stu prevention and control. transportation issues caused by A total of 34 barbers came for and disposable gloves. student in Shanxi Medical Universi dents to help the children in need. the epidemic. ward to serve. He and his fellow volunteers ty. She is now publicizing public The volunteers brought their Li Yali contributed to this story. Milestone as last critical patient is cured Public transport gets moving again as nationwide epidemic slows down
By YUAN SHENGGAO
As the novel coronavirus epi demic in Shanxi begins to come under control, the province’s public transportation is gradually getting back to normal, according to the local traffic authority. Sources from the Shanxi Depart ment of Transportation said that public highway passenger trans portation services from Taiyuan, the provincial capital, to other cit ies and counties in Shanxi resumed last week. On March 5, passengers lined up at the entrance to the Taiyuan Jian nan Bus Passenger Terminal, wait ing for health checks by terminal employees before setting off to In Shanxi province, the last criticalcondition novel coronavirus pneumonia patient is cured and longawaited destinations. discharged from hospital on March 9. The patient, aged 86, was the oldest of the critical cases in Shanxi. A passenger named Pei Yanglin He was transferred from a hospital in Shouyang county to the Taiyuan No 4 People’s Hospital on Feb 11 couldn’t hide his excitement. after he developed a fever, cough and difficulty breathing. He recovered with the help of a ventilator Pei and his wife, residents in tube and therapies that combined Western and traditional Chinese medicine. By 12 pm on March 11, 131 Yangquan county, visited their son of the 133 confirmed cases had been cured and released from hospitals. LIU TONG / FOR CHINA DAILY in Taiyuan before Spring Festival. His original plan was to look aft er his grandson during the first days of the winter vacation and the number of visitors will grow then take the whole family back to Grottoes reopened to gradually as the epidemic subsides Yangquan for the Spring Festival and the weather gets warmer. reunion. He Jianguo, deputy chief of the However, the scheduled trip was administration, said the scenic spot delayed by the novel coronavirus welcome back tourists is not currently open to tour groups. outbreak for more than a month. He said the site will be free to “I missed my pets and flowers in By YUAN SHENGGAO recognized by the Shanxi provincial medical workers throughout the Yangquan,” Pei said. government, so the site has country, to give them thanks for “When I learned that local emer With preventative measures in reopened to tourists. their contributions to fighting gency response was adjusted from place, Yungang Grottoes, the global Yao Jie and Zhao Xu were the first against the novel coronavirus epi level one to level two and bus servi From top: A passenger boards a longdistance bus after register ly renowned historical site and tour two tourists welcomed at the scenic demic. ces resumed, I knew it was time to ing his health condition. ZHONG QING / FOR CHINA DAILY A bus sets off to ist destination in Datong, Shanxi spot since its reopening. Located at the southern foot of go back home,” he added. Yangquan in the east of Shanxi. ZHONG QING / FOR CHINA DAILY province, reopened to sightseers on “The weather is lovely with a blue Wuzhou Mountain, some 16 Excited as they were, Pei and his March 1. sky and the lake in front of the caves kilometers west of Datong city, the wife waited in the wellspaced line. The site had been closed since Jan is as bright as a mirror with thin ice,” Yungang Grottoes is one of the three On the bus they were asked to be adopted new ways of operation to 25 in response to the novel coronavi Yao said. He added that he feels priv famous Buddhist cave clusters in seated at a required distance from avoid contagion. rus outbreak in the country. ileged to be able to visit the globally China. each other. The resumption of For instance, Taiyuan Public According to a proposal released renowned attraction with only few Comprising 252 caves and 51,000 “The resumption of longdis Transportation Group is providing by the National Cultural Heritage others, as it is usually crowded year statues within a carved area of tance bus services is a good signal, longdistance bus chartered buses for passengers Administration on Feb 27, the coun round. 18,000 square meters, the Yungang showing that the epidemic is likely services is a good working at certain local companies. try’s cultural and historical sites are According to the administration Grottoes represents the outstanding to be over in the near future and “The pointtopoint chartered suggested to open gradually accord of the scenic spot, Yungang received achievement of Buddhist cave art in everything will be back to normal,” signal, showing that bus service is a safe way for passen ing to the risk level in their areas. 130 visits on March 1. China during the 5th and 6th centu said Cao Qing, a passenger about to the epidemic is ger transportation and it can avoid Datong, where the Yungang Wang Yanxiang, Party secretary of ries. The Five Caves created by travel by bus to Zuoquan county in cross contagion as passenger Grottoes is located, is a lowrisk city the administration, said he believes famous monk Tan Yao in 453, with the east of the province. likely to be over in health conditions and travel histo their strict unity of layout and Amid the outbreak of the virus, the near future...” ry are traceable,” said Chen Yun design, constitute classical master public transportation was among fang, a staff member of Taiyuan pieces of the first peak of Chinese the biggest hit in Shanxi. Cao Qing, a passenger to Public Transportation Group. Buddhist art. According to Wang Jin, deputy Zuoquan In the railway sector, train servi While influenced by Buddhist chief of the Shanxi Department ces are resuming in a considered cave art from South and Central of Transportation, with the low manner. Asia, the Yungang Grottoes com ering of the emergency level, the Wang said, adding that there are no “For the safety of passengers, the bines Buddhist cave art with dis longdistance public transporta highrisk regions in Shanxi prov occupancy of every train is capped tinctive Chinese character and local tion sector can gradually get back ince currently. at 50 percent,” said Liu Feng, an spirit. As a result, the grottoes to normal. Despite the epidemic seemingly executive at the Taiyuan bureau of played a vitally important role “We are resuming operations more under control, Wang said China Railways. among early Oriental Buddhist grot according to the risk levels in vari transportation companies are Civil aviation is also getting back toes and had a farreaching impact ous regions,” Wang said. required to take strict preventative to normal with Taiyuan Airport on Buddhist cave art in China and The official said transportation measures. open to 74 air routes linking 49 cit East Asia. services are now fully open to low “For instance, buses should be ies in China, according to Deng The Yungang Grottoes was added risk regions, which included 109 disinfected on a daily basis and Baoping, deputy chairman of to the World Cultural Heritage List counties and cities. passengers are asked to wear Shanxi Aviation Industry Group. in December 2001. And services for the remaining masks,” Wang said. Tourists visit the Yungang Grottoes in Datong on March 1, the first eight mediumrisk regions are like For innercity passenger trans Guo Yanjie contributed to day of its reopening. WANG ZHONGXUN / FOR CHINA DAILY Li Yali contributed to this story. ly to resume in the near future, portation, bus companies have this story.
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