Reconstruction workers' lives in Sichuan
Updated: 2008-11-11 20:03
SHIFANG, Sichuan -- It's up at 5 a.m., to bed after midnight for Tang Qiang.
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It's Tang's job to walk 78 km up and down Guangqing road, a lifeline which has to be rebuilt.
"I saw the twisted road and I knew the quake was very terrible, " said Tang.
Guangqing road is a major route in Shifang county. It connects six badly damaged townships, including Hongbai, Yinghua and Luoshui.
As chief engineer of the project, Tang is responsible for the reconstruction plan and overseeing its technical implementation. To do that, he has to walk along the road looking for any problems.
"I could have one day rest but only if it's raining," he said.
Tang has been with the project for three months, August to October. He finally gets to go home to Beijing as part of the road is now complete, 45 km stretching from Guangyuan to Luoshui township.
There are thousands of people like Tang doing quake relief work and reconstruction. Some volunteer, others are sent by the government.
According to a work plan released by China's State Council, 19 provinces and municipalities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong, Jiangsu and Tianjin, are partnering with Sichuan, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces offering financial or work relief.
For example, Beijing is partnered with Shifang county. In the next three years, the capital city will spend about seven billion yuan (about one billion US dollars) on reconstruction. There are currently plans for eight new schools, two hospitals, 600 low-rent apartments and several roads.
One of the people doing the work is Guo Shengya.
"I was quite shocked when I saw the damage with my own yes," he said. "It is a different feeling than seeing it on TV."
Guo shares a single room with two colleagues in a newly constructed, single-story shelter. He said life isn't easy.
"Once, I didn't take a shower for a week," Guo exclaimed.
The shelter, which was designed to be environmentally friendly, has solar powered water heaters. Guo said it's usually overcast in Shifang and sometimes the water doesn't get warm.
He also has problems with the infamously spicy food. So do 34 other civil servants working for the Beijing government while in Shifang. They have been stationed in the county for between one and a half to three years.
It's tough not only physically for Guo but also emotionally. His wife is in Beijing.
"When I am here, I usually talk to her on the Internet in the evening which is the only entertainment for me," said the 30-year-old.
To help him cope with his relationship and the trauma of seeing all the quake's damage, the Front Headquarters of Earthquake Reconstruction in Shifang arranged for both physical and psychological employee check-ups.
Workers also get ten day vacations every three months.
Guo just went home to spend time with his family. He is happy about that but also proud of the work he is doing in Shifang.
"I'm glad that I can do practical work for the quake-affected people," he said.
Tang Qiang feels the same way. He said he heard a local elder passing by the work site saying, "You've really done a great job for us".
"At that moment, I felt all my efforts were worthwhile," Tang said.
The eight-magnitude quake on May 12, killed nearly 70,000 people. Some 18,000 are still missing. More than 5 million were left homeless and China suffered an estimated $123 billion US dollars in direct economic losses.
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