Noon.
Outside of Guang Ming Garden.
The autumn wind blew up clouds of dust from the collapsed buildings. The Subdistrict had become ruined, and it looks at a movie scene.
Buildings had collapsed, and people were crying everywhere.
Dong Xuebing felt heartache as he walked towards Guang Ming Garden with Deputy Chief Chu and his men. They were carrying some injured residents they rescued along the way.
They had walked along the road towards the west and saved more than a dozen residents they met. Some residents didn’t know where to go, and Dong Xuebing directed them to the nearest relief center. They improvised stretchers to carry the injured residents who couldn’t walk. They carried some on their backs towards Guang Ming Gardens. This is the Subdistrict Office’s temporary command center.
The garden is full of people.
Most residents don’t have tents, and they are in a daze on the ground.
Suddenly, the Guang Ming Subdistrict Office’s staff cheered.
“It’s Director Dong!”
“Director is back!”
“Director, are you alright?!”
Their leader was back, and all of them rushed over to him.
Dong Xuebing put down the improvised stretcher and orders. “Bring the injured in, and get the doctors! There are a few more injured residents at the back! Go and help them!”
Pang Gang, Deputy Chief Chu, and their men passed the injured to the staff.
The staff quickly helped those injured into a tent for treatment.
A staff had informed the Subdistrict Office’s Leaders, and Geng Xinke, Zhou Yanru, and Yu Rongfeng rushed out of a tent.
Geng Xinke was shocked when Dong Xuebing was covered in dirt and blood. “You are injured! Hurry and help Director inside for treatment!”
“I am fine.” Dong Xuebing replied. “Tell me about the situation now. How many casualties are there?”
Geng Xinke sighed and reported. “There is no phone signal. My men had run to the other relief centers to find out the situation. We have a few hundred injured residents, and thirty to forty have serious injuries.”
“Are there any dead?”
“We did not discover anyone that had passed away during the earthquake yet. It’s all thanks to our preventive measures.”
Dong Xuebing is relieved. “How is the rescue progressing?”
“I had sent our men out to search for survivors.” Geng Xinke points to his back. “About one-fifth of our residents are here, and the rest were sent to the various relief centers. We don’t know how many residents remained in their homes, but it should not be many. Some residents had sought refuge in underground parking lots and other places. Our men had brought loudhailers with them, and they will bring them to safety once they find any survivors. But we lack manpower equipment and don’t have the experience of disaster search and rescue. They had to dig and clear the debris with their bare hands. Some of them were injured during the rescue.”
This is an emergency.
Dong Xuebing looked at them and said firmly. “We can’t wait for the rescue party now. We must act first and overcome whatever difficulties along the way.”
“Yes.” Geng Xinke nodded.
“Do we have enough food and water?” Dong Xuebing asked.
“No. Although we had prepared before the earthquake, we don’t have enough to feed many people.”
Dong Xuebing looks terrible. “How long can our food supplies last?”
“Five days at most.”
“We got to think of a solution. We must have sufficient food and water.”
The more Dong Xuebing understands the situation, the more terrible he looks. They lack food, water, lifesaving equipment, manpower, and medical staff. There are too many injured, and they can’t contact outside. Some residents are missing, and they are searching for them. They faced too many problems. But he knows they had tried their best. The earthquake prevention and mitigation awareness campaign, procurement of disaster relief supplies, and evacuation of the residents before the earthquake happens. The other Subdistrict Offices should be facing more problems than him.
Dong Xuebing looks at the time. It’s been more than an hour since the earthquake.
Dong Xuebing forced himself to calm down and gave out the orders to his men. He sent three more temporary search parties to look for survivors. These search party members are from the Subdistrict Office’s staff and volunteer from the residents. He needs more people to join the rescue efforts as life is more precious than anything else.
After giving the orders, Dong Xuebing left Guang Ming Gardens for the following relief center.
An open plaza.
More than two thousand residents had gathered in this open plaza. This number is much lesser than Guang Ming Gardens, but they are densely packed. The open plaza is not big, and that’s the most residents it can accommodate. Dong Xuebing can see everyone crowding together from a distance. He spotted Deputy Director Wang Yuling among the residents. Her face is red from shouting into a loudhailer.
“Don’t push, and don’t panic!”
“Yuling!” Dong Xuebing walked over.
“Ah… Director Dong!” Wang Yuling quickly puts down the loudhailer. “Why are you so badly injured?”
“I knocked my head accidentally, and I am fine. Tell me about the situation here.”
Wang Yuling is in charge of this relief center, and she gave Dong Xuebing a brief report of the number of injured and rescue effort progress.
Dong Xuebing is relieved. The situation is not as bad as he thinks.
As both of them were talking, a Subdistrict Office’s staff ran over anxiously from a tent. “Director Wang! Something happened in the District Government! Director Dong!”
Dong Xuebing is shocked. “What happened?!”
The staff took a few deep breaths to calm down.
Wang Yuling anxiously asked. “Hurry and tell us what’s going on!”
“The radio reported that our District Party Committee Building had caught fire. Many District Leaders and Staff are trapped in the building. The rescue party and fire engines can’t reach them because of the road conditions.”
“What?!” Wang Yuling’s face changed. Her Uncle, Wang Anshi, is working there.
Dong Xuebing takes a deep breath and jumps to his feet. His heart is pounding furiously, and he got a bad feeling.
The leaders should be evacuated first if the building catches fire.
What will Geng Yuehua do? Will she leave or rescue her staff first?
Dong Xuebing’s face slowly turns pale. He felt Mayor Geng would not leave until all her staff was saved. She should be one of those trapped in the building.
Damn it!
