△ There are cars that have been destroyed by flood everywhere in the river.
From Luoyang to Gongyi, there was serious water accumulation in some sections, and some cars were still venturing through.
On July 22, my colleagues and I drove from Luoyang to Mihe Town, 116 kilometers away.
At the previous speed, this journey only took one and a half hours, but when we finally arrived at this "isolated island" in the flood, we found that it had taken several times the time of the original plan.
The first half of the 310 National Highway we took was relatively smooth. When we reached the junction of Yanshi in Luoyang and Gongyi in Zhengzhou, hundreds of meters of waterlogged road appeared ahead, flooding many cars.
We decided to make a detour of 1 km and take the old 310 National Highway instead. Unexpectedly, hundreds of vehicles were stranded on the old 310 National Highway, so we had to return to the original road.
On the way to Gongyi, many trees were washed down by the flood.
After venturing through the waterlogged road section, we were glad that the car did not have water. The bad news came from the front - the subgrade of the bridge in Huiguo Town was washed out. To go to Mihe Town, you must take the old 310 National Highway.
So we returned to the old national road and moved forward step by step in the traffic flow.
A car to Gongyi for disaster relief was blocked on the old 310 National Highway. In order to load more materials, the passenger seat was also full of instant noodles.
A few hours later, we finally arrived outside Mihe Town. The first people we saw were members of the Beijing Blue Sky Rescue Team. They looked tired and covered with mud, and the assault boat was also covered with mud.
Through talking with them, I learned that they had been rescuing in Mihe Town for a whole day without sleeping and had just withdrawn to rest.
How serious the disaster was in Mihe Town, like a heavy question mark, pressed on my heart.
Mihe Town after the disaster.
When I entered Mihe Town, I had a startling answer to my question just now: there is mud on the road, which is the trace left by the flood, collapsed courtyard walls, broken vehicles
There were three roads into the center of the town, but now there is only one, a lonely bridge, connecting Mihe Town and the outside world.
A road in Mihe Town was washed down, and local people placed a bicycle at the collapse to remind the driver.
On July 22, the only bridge accessible to Mihe Town.
A villager pointed to the pier not far away and said that there were several bridges on the river, except the second bridge on the Mihe River, which was destroyed. There are only two trucks hanging under the pier of this bridge, one of which is a semitrailer weighing more than ten tons. Under the impact of the flood, it repeatedly hit the pier.
In order to prevent the bridge from collapsing, the rescue team tried to pull out the vehicle with a crane, but the construction was difficult and there was no progress at the moment.
A villager picked up his mobile phone to photograph the cars washed together by the flood.
We crossed the bridge carefully. The town was full of cars destroyed by the flood. Some were in the river, some were in the mud, some were hanging on the wall, some were filled with mud and weeds
A villager who had just received relief supplies told us that his family lived on the other side of the river. On the day of the rainstorm, he watched his car float and tried to tie it with ropes to prevent it from being washed away. But the water was getting bigger and bigger, almost taking him away.
"Later, I found a big tree and climbed up to hold it tightly, so that I could escape a disaster." He sighed, "It's a pity that the car is still gone.".
In order to restore local communication, rescue workers are repairing optical cables.
Brother Wang looking for his own car.
Also washed away by the flood is the Zhenmin Wang.
When we saw him, he was among the rocks and weeds, trying to find his own van. "I've been looking for it all day, but I haven't found it". His expression was a little dull, looking at the distance, and he didn't want to talk again.
Su Zhiqiang and his wife are cleaning the mud and debris in the car.
Su Zhiqiang, a 38 year old truck driver, took his wife to deliver goods to Mihe Town from downtown Gongyi on July 20. "We were almost swept away with people and cars".
At 9 a.m. on the 20th, water began to accumulate in the streets of Mihe Town, and Su Zhiqiang did not pay attention to it. At 3 p.m., when the flood came, he wanted to drive away, but it was too late. The flood deflected the front of the car by 90 degrees, 100 meters away.
Su Zhiqiang and his wife were trapped in the driver's cab for 4 hours. The water was a little bit smaller, and the vehicle stabilized in front of a small building. He took out the rope and threw it to the person on the second floor, tying one end to the upstairs and the other to the door.
Then, he grabbed the rope and his wife held him tightly. The two men slowly moved forward in the water and waded across the 20 meter waterway from the car to the small building.
Zhang Lixin is cleaning at the door of the hardware store.
The flood destroyed the shops along the street in Mihe Town, and the originally bustling town became very desolate.
After the flood receded, the merchants were busy saving themselves, picking up the remaining goods, and clearing the mud in front of the door with shovels
Zhang Lixin, 55 years old, sat in front of his hardware store with bare arms smoking. When he saw us coming, he stood up and invited us into the room.
The shop was full of mud. He wanted to ask us to sit down, but he couldn't find a place to sit. "I have never seen such heavy rain in my life!" Zhang Lixin said with a wry smile that he lost about 60000 or 70000 yuan.
"Fortunately, he robbed some goods, but not all of them were washed away." He was also open-minded. It's OK to lose some money. It would be better for his family to be safe.
Zhang Lixin said that when the flood came, he thought not of his shop, but of his sister and brother-in-law living outside the town.
After the flood receded, he hurried to his sister's house. He had been riding a battery car for 15 minutes, but he ran for more than 6 hours. "Fortunately, people are OK".
Ma Songchen, 70, is cleaning up the mud in the town.
Ma Songchen, a 70 year old man, is cleaning the mud on the street. He doesn't usually live in town, but in caves. On the day of the rainstorm, his cave was flooded. He smashed the window desperately to save his trapped wife.
After escape, he and his wife found a temporary residence not far from the town. He didn't want to be idle. He took the initiative to help the sanitation personnel clean up the mud, help the shopkeeper clean up the water in the shop, and do something within his power.
When he mentioned the flood, he still had a lingering fear. He told us and motioned to us with a spade at the same time, "Just like this, home is gone".
Wang Jinguo and his wife, who have lived in Mihe Town for more than 20 years, are going to return to their hometown in Hebei for temporary residence.
Some families began to evacuate Mihe Town, which was cut off from water, electricity and network.
Wang Jinguo and his wife are from Hebei. They are doing business in Mihe Town. After the disaster, their son went to great lengths to come from Hebei to pick them up. Wang Jinguo and his wife were carrying four plastic bags filled with some clothes and fruits, ready to meet their son.
At night, the rescue team tried to lift the truck in the river.
In the evening, many places in the town were still without power supply. Occasionally, rescue vehicles passed by, breaking the silence here.
Our big crane in the daytime is still trying to pick up the truck stuck under the bridge. The rescue team member Liu Decheng can't remember how many times he has tied the safety rope to the pier to fix the hook rope of the crane.
The relief supplies from all over the country are constantly coming to Dami River Town, and the water and electricity supply will be restored soon. "The difficulties will pass soon," said Liu Decheng and walked down the bridge again.
On the evening of the 22nd, many people still took mineral water and food with them on their way to Mihe Town.
3940th stage
Author | Wang Ying Photography | Chen Jie
Edit | Made in summer | Regular shot
Produced | Tencent News