Chapter 751: Chapter 509: The Situation Across the River is More Severe
The next day before dawn, as the sky began to lighten, the strong typhoon finally passed, and the raging, surging waves quietly receded. People rushed to the seawall to check, and indeed, a miracle had occurred: the second dike held!
Instantly, everyone on the seawall hugged each other in jubilation.
Secretary Ye let out a sigh of relief but couldn’t be as happy as the cadres and people of San Zao Port on the dike.
Though the typhoon had passed, the rain kept pouring down, and the sea tide was still "joining in the excitent," causing the water level of the Yangtze River to rise instead of fall!
He convened a eting with the cadres of San Zao Port, demanding they urgently reinforce the seawall, then he returned to the city to deploy flood control work in Linghai, and rushed to Bailong Port to board the Yangtze Police 110 boat to inspect the Yangtze River levee.
The staff of Linghai City’s direct agencies were all on the front lines of flood control, living in flood drainage stations or in tents set up temporarily, with a door placed on two stools to serve as a bed.
Wherever there was danger, cadres organized young and strong laborers to rush there.
Wherever there was a breach, there one would find Party cadres, basic Civilian Soldiers, and the masses working to plug the gaps, all with the sa thought: to reduce losses as much as possible.
In short, everyone rushed to the "battlefield," digging mud, carrying loads, building dams, each person seemingly having endless energy and inexhaustible strength.
After all, the water levels of the Yangtze River and the inland rivers were still rising, and at this critical mont, no one dared to relax.
By the ti Han Yu and Ma Jintao arrived at Jiangxin a second ti, only seven to eight square kiloters remained out of the sixteen square kiloters of Jiangxin, with most of the farmland subrged by the floodwaters.
People like Zhao Hongxing, Dong Bangjun, Zhang Bigong, and Vice Village Chief Chen moved the twenty-so people they had found braving the typhoon to a resident ridge (gathering place) that had not been flooded.
A few won, holding their children, were in tears; their hos had been flooded, their livelihoods on the river dike destroyed, how could they continue their lives?
Two middle-aged n squatted by the door and smoked sullenly, their brows furrowed as they gazed at their wrecked hos, pondering over ways forward.
An elderly man in his seventies or eighties, who had clearly experienced similar flooding, looked at the pouring rain outside and began humming a folk song that had been passed down for who knows how many years.
"Living by the river, eating fresh fish, the house turns upside-down when the floods co. With baskets on shoulders, escaping from disaster, when the waters recede, back we return to farm..."
Han Yu had heard this folk song humd by others more than once; it could be said to be a true reflection of the Binjiang people during a flood.
A higher elevation doesn’t an a house won’t leak.
A woman swept water outside while admonishing the child sitting on a chair, "Tonight we can’t sleep too deeply, in case there’s a sudden flood in the night, our whole family will have to run for higher ground..."
Yet, the children stranded on Jiangxin weren’t overly concerned.
The typhoon and flood had changed their known world, and they continued to frolic and play, filled with various fantasies about life that they never had before, each one excited beyond asure.
They had heard many incredible things from sowhere, and they wanted to verify every single one.
A few bold brats even surrounded Han Yu, excitedly bombarding him with questions, leaving him at a loss for how to answer.
"Uncle Policeman, people say on the roof of a house at the second team’s dike-end, it’s wrapped with snakes, is that true?"
"I didn’t go to the second team, I’m not sure about the specifics."
"My mom said dozens of pigs died at the fourth team, floating on the water. Uncle Policeman, did you see it?"
"No."
"Xiao Jun said the drawers where Chen Er’s store keeps money were flooded, and the coins are buried in mud!"
"Do you want to go dig for it?" Han Yu’s expression turned serious as he pointed at the young boy, "I don’t know if it’s true or false, but even if it is true, that’s soone else’s money!"
Realizing he had said sothing inappropriate, the young boy hurriedly changed the subject, "Uncle, people say a red barrel floated from upstream, and inside it was a chubby little kid. Was that kid rescued?"
"Who said that? I have no idea!"
"You’re a policeman, uncle. How co you don’t know anything."
As soon as the words of the kid, who was changing his teeth, ended, a chubby little child pushed forward with anticipation, asking, "Uncle Policeman, my grandpa said a lot of lifeboats are coming from upstream and they will distribute things. When exactly will they co, and when will they give us stuff?"
Without asking in detail, one could tell they were definitely hoping superiors would distribute new clothes to them, all kinds of exquisite stationery, or even toys.
Han Yu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, unsure how to explain, when Zhao Hongxing, who had been busy and tense all night, woke up and ca over, yawning endlessly.
The little ones seed a bit scared of Zhao Hongxing and ran away faster than rabbits, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
One could imagine, the whole village had beco a super-sized playground and adventure ground, and they would have a lot of fun in the coming days.
Zhao Hongxing took over the dry food Han Yu had brought from the shore, and while eating, asked listlessly, "How are things on land?"
"The typhoon caused not a small amount of damage. I don’t know about other places, but just at Bisha Ferry, several old houses were blown over. Luckily, no one died."
"How about the riverbank in the city?"
"The riverbank is fine for now, but relying on the original levee simply can’t hold back the floodwaters. The entire Binjiang section is reinforcing and raising the height, and many places are building a second line of defense. If the rain doesn’t stop, three more days of this and the Yangtze River levee might completely collapse."
"We must rush the repairs!"
"They’re frantically repairing it, the dike is full of people, anyone who can be on the river dike is up there."
Zhao Hongxing didn’t expect the flood situation to be so severe, and asked in shock: "The tide hasn’t receded?"
Han Yu said helplessly, "No, according to the report from the Binjiang City Flood Control Command, the tide levels at several hydrological stations along the line have all exceeded historical highs."
Zhao Hongxing pressed further: "What about the situation on Jiangxin Island?"
"Village Chief Chen is on the phone now; the rest of the people will definitely need to be organized for evacuation."
"It’s better to evacuate to the shore earlier. There are too few people on Jiangxin Island, and relying only on the manpower of a few production teams will definitely not hold."
Han Yu was about to say that there were a few old people who were taking chances and didn’t want to leave their hotown, and that they would need to work on changing these old people’s minds together with Village Chief Chen later when his cellphone suddenly rang.
He pulled it out to see the caller ID, and it was Director Wang calling.
"Director Wang, I’ve just arrived at Jiangxin Island. Director Zhao and the others are safe, and the twenty or so civilians stranded on the island are also safe. I’m right here with Director Zhao, do you want to speak to him?"
"No need, speaking to you is fine."
"What’s the matter?"
Wang Wenhong, who had also been fighting the flood on the river dike all night, said with a hoarse voice, "The damage is greater on the other side of the river than ours, and the flood prevention situation is more severe than ours as well. It is said that several sections of the river dike have collapsed between Zhenjiang and Zhangjia Port. Their terrain is also lower than ours, the flooding is likewise more severe than here."
Han Yu subconsciously asked, "What does that have to do with us? We can’t even take care of ourselves right now."
"It had nothing to do with us, but now it does."
"What does it an?"
"The Provincial Departnt knows we in Binjiang have Water Police and law enforcent vessels, and they’ve ordered us to imdiately organize vessels to go assist with the evacuation of civilians on Jiangxin Sand at Zhangjia Port!"
"The Provincial Departnt ordered us to go assist with the evacuation?"
"Director Liu is also a mber of the Provincial Defense Command. He attended the induction ceremony for 002 and the Changhang Bureau’s law enforcent vessels 110 and 111, so he knows we are capable. The Changhang Bureau also received orders from the Provincial Defense Command, but they can only dispatch 111."
"What about 110?"
"110 has been requisitioned by the Linghai City Flood Control Command. Secretary Ye is on board 110, commanding the reinforcent of river levees in several villages and towns along the river."
"There are still around twenty civilians here on Jiangxin Island. I need to move the stranded civilians onto shore first before I can go to the other side to assist with the rescue."
"I know."
Wang Wenhong took a glance at the ergency notice forwarded by the City Bureau and continued: "In addition to assisting the Zhangjia Port Defense Command with evacuating the civilians from Jiangxin Sand, what’s the next important task for you guys?"
Han Yu asked in a low voice, "What task?"
"The number one Commander from the Provincial Committee is coming down to inspect flood prevention asures early tomorrow. The Provincial Departnt has ordered you to lead 001 and 002 to the waters of Zhenjiang Port before 9:30 tomorrow morning to assist the Provincial Departnt’s Security Office with the security task."
"Secretary Chen is coming to inspect!"
"Not only is he coming to inspect, but he might also board 001. Secretary Lu and Director Chen have already been notified, and they ordered you to ensure Secretary Chen’s safety."
"Yes!"
When one side is in trouble, all sides provide support.
The economic developnt across the river is better than Jiangbei, but right now, the disaster they are facing is more severe than on this side of the river.
They belong to the Taihu Water System, with very low terrain, almost entirely below sea level. It’s hard to withstand floods with just the barriers and embanknts previously built; reportedly, many places are flooded.
Wang Wenhong took a deep breath and then said, "Secretary Lu and Director Chen ordered that after you assist the Zhangjia Port Defense Command in evacuating the civilians from Jiangxin Sand, don’t rush back. You will lead the team to carry out the security mission for the number one Commander from the Provincial Committee. Hongxing will lead the remaining comrades and inflatable boats under the command of Zhangjia Port side."
Han Yu had already learned through the high-frequency radios of the Port Supervision System and the police command frequency that the damage on the other side was significant. Contemplating, he said, "They’re busy with flood prevention over there, and we’re going to help, so we can’t cause them trouble. Considering we don’t know when we can return once we go, I think we should bring our own supplies."
"Bring our own supplies?"
"Don’t we have an Integrated Supply Ship? Unload the foam fire extinguishing agent, bring more fuel, freshwater, and dry food. We can sustain the battle only if our logistics are secured."
Wang Wenhong could clearly hear the subtext in Han Yu’s words, and he said, "I’ll report to Director Chen right now and see if the superiors can give you guys more supplies."
"Make it quick, the fuel on 001 is already running low, and the gasoline for the inflatable boats is almost out."
"I know, wait for my ssage."
The province thinking of sending Binjiang’s water forces to help with the rescue and disaster relief across the river is a sign of trust in Binjiang.
Upon receiving the report, Secretary Lu imdiately stated that the supply of materials for the team going to aid in the rescue and disaster relief would be entirely taken care of by the City Flood Control Command, determined not to add trouble to the party committees and governnts across the river.
Considering that since they’re going to help, bringing just two law enforcent vessels and three inflatable boats seed insufficient. Secretary Lu and Mayor Wang discussed and, through Director Chen, told Han Yu to contact Port Supervision and Customs to see if a few more vessels could go.
After receiving the call from Director Chen, Han Yu imdiately contacted his school sister and Liu Xinpei, asking Liu Xinpei to help with purchasing diesel, gasoline, bottled mineral water, rice, fruits, and vegetables. Once the supplies were all in place, he would ask the Waterway Engineering Bureau to use an engineering vessel to tow over the "Integrated Supply Ship" that was without its own power.
As for the vessels going to assist with the rescue and disaster relief, the Port Supervision Bureau and Customs were very cooperative, imdiately agreeing to arrange Supervision vessels 39 and 41 and Customs vessel 108 to join Binjiang Police 002 and Yangtze Police 111 in heading to Jiangxin Sand at Zhangjia Port City, all under the command of Han Yu.
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