Profiles

Amputated heroine stands again

By Li Qian (Chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2006-08-25 17:32

Wen Huazhi, a young female ciceroni who told rescuers to save the tourists first after they were seriously injured in a traffic accident and had one leg amputated because of it, can now stand using a prosthetic leg and will attend university, Xinhua news agency reported Friday.

Wen Huazhi walks out of the Huanghua Airport in Changsha July 27 using a prosthetic leg. [Hunan Daily]

After four months of physical therapy and learning to use her new prosthesis at the Beijing Charity Hospital, Wen went to Tian'anmen Square in the early morning of Aug 24 to watch the flag-raising ceremony.

"I am happy to be able to stand with my family and watch this ceremony," she said.

The 23-year-old ciceroni is from Xiangtan in the central province of Hunan, and was working for Xintiandi Travel Agency when tragedy struck.

It was 2:35 on the afternoon of August 28, 2005 when the tourist bus carrying Wen and dozens of tourists ran into a heavy truck carrying a load of coal in Yan'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. The accident left six dead and fourteen critically injured.

When Wen came to consciousness in the front seat, she found the driver and another ciceroni were dead, and herself trapped in her seat, with her leg broken and the bone showing through the skin.

But she told rescuers to save others first when they arrived at the venue and tried to get her out of the seat. "I'm the guide. Those in the back are all tourists. Please save them first!" she said.

One of the survivors Wan Zhongyi said "as it was a bad crash, it took a long time to save each passenger. Wen suffered in great pain waiting for her turn but she was still encouraging us and telling us not to fall asleep. It's strange, where did a weak girl get the strength to yell out so loudly? If it was not for her encouragement, I would have fallen asleep and never woken up again."

During the two-hour-long rescue operation, Wen lost consciousness several times before being rescued and sent to Xijing Hospital in Xi'an, where doctors amputated her left leg above the knee on August 29.

"It's a pity. If she has been treated a bit earlier, we could have saved her leg," head surgeon Dr. Li Jun said.

When asked whether she regretted of giving up the chance to be rescued first, Wen said with a smile, "I just did what I had to do."

The Hunan Province Tourism Bureau issued the heroine a Hunan Province Ciceroni Exemplar certificate in December 2005 for her courage and spirit during the crisis.

After months rehabilitation in Beijing, Wen is now able to walk, climb slopes and stairs, and even clean the floor using a mop.

Wen now has the chance to attend Xiangtan University in Hunan.