China's infrastructure assistance to Vanuatu has dramatically improved people's well-being in the Pacific country, said Prime Minister of the Republic of Vanuatu Charlot Salwai.
Salwai paid an official visit to China from July 7 to 12. During his trip, he toured the southern province of Guangdong and explored the megacities of Beijing and Shanghai. His visit included tours of high-tech companies, a ride on a high-speed train, and the viewing of a performance of traditional Cantonese opera.
On Dec. 18, 2023, the handover ceremony was held for the Vanuatu Malekula Road Phase II, constructed by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) on Malekula Island. The road has been hailed by local people as "the road of hope" or "the road to the future."
At the ceremony, Salwai said the new road signifies "a new level of partnership with China."
In an interview with China Central Television Network (CCTV) that aired on Friday, Salwai said the new road has brought major benefits to ordinary people.
"It's a great change for their life because you would see the condition of the road before. Sometimes during bad weather, we could not go to a village by vehicle. The vehicles could not cross the rivers, could not cross some rough areas. But today, in only a few minutes we can get to the main center for the island. Before, we could not. So it's a big change in the life of the people. We can have access to schools, to hospitals," Salwai said.
In a poignant example of challenges on the island before the road's construction, the prime minister recalled that many women would begin giving birth before reaching a medical facility.
"Many women sometimes delivered on the road. They could not reach the hospital because of the condition of the road," said Salwai.
Vanuatu is one of the first countries to join China's Belt and Road Initiative, and now the cooperation projects within the framework, including the building of national stadiums and schools, are becoming landmark projects not just for the country but for the entire South Pacific region.
"The priority of the government is to try to do as much as it can within its means, of course, to provide better service to the people, and in Vanuatu, a few of islands are benefiting. We have found a similar route on the island of Tanna. Tanna is one of the areas that is attracting tourists because that's where we have an active volcano. Associated with the road, we will now have more better access to go to the volcano. Before it was very hard. Today we can go to the volcano. And I think it is shared with other islands in the Pacific because we are all small islands. We have limited resources. But with the cooperation and relationship that we have with China, we can afford or we are going to be able to have access to this infrastructure. It is also resilient because it can resist cyclones," the prime minister said.
Vanuatu's PM recounts life-changing impacts of China-assisted road development
Leaders of the China Search and Rescue Team dispatched to Myanmar following a deadly earthquake recalled details of their difficult rescue operations.
The powerful 7.9-magnitude quake, the strongest recorded in the country in a century, rocked the Sagaing Region of Myanmar on March 28, with the epicenter close to Mandalay, the country's second-largest city.
As of April 2, the China Search and Rescue Team had successfully participated in the rescue of five survivors since arriving in the earthquake-stricken area in Myanmar. Chinese rescue forces as a whole had rescued a total of nine survivors.
Zhao Ming, head of the Chinese national rescue team, said in an interview with China Media Group that the high temperature increased the difficulty of rescue. Fortunately, the rescue team received support from the local people.
"We brought along some necessary medicines and equipment, and actively sought solutions locally. I think our actions inspired the local people, who spontaneously sent us some drinks and many electric fans. Of course, we also took strict measures on the rescue scene. The smell of decay was very strong at the earthquake site, so we asked our operation teams to conduct disinfection before leaving the site and after returning," Zhao said.
On March 31, the China Search and Rescue Team pulled out four survivors - three adult females and a girl - after 13 hours of hard work in Myanmar's seriously-hit Mandalay City.
At 00:40 March 31 local time, an adult female trapped for nearly 60 hours was rescued after over five hours of relentless work, marking the first survivor rescued by the team in the city.
Without pausing for rest, the rescuers immediately moved to another nearby site at the Sky Villa apartment complex.
Recalling details of the rescue mission, Li Guangnai, deputy leader of the China Search and Rescue Team, said that effective search and rescue methods improved efficiency at the dangerous and complicated structure.
"When we rescued the second and third survivors, they were in Block C of the apartment, which collapsed like a pancake. After arriving at the scene, the rescuers went to the roof according to the direction given by the survivors' family members. When we used the radar life detector on the roof, we did not find them. So we created absolute silence by suspending all rescue operations and then knocked on the floor with stones to transmit the sound to see if there was any response from the trapped people. We knocked continuously and received a response from inside. Through the sound, we quickly confirmed the approximate location. According to the evaluation of the experts on the scene, we used a method of top-to-bottom demolition for the rescue," Li said.
At 05:37 on the day, a 5-year-old girl who was buried in Block C of Sky Villa was rescued. Li said the girl was curled up in fear in the corner of the wardrobe when being found, protecting her head with a teddy bear.
About an hour later, a woman who was buried in the same rubble was successfully rescued. She was 26 weeks pregnant. At around 07:15, a 29-year-old woman trapped in Block A of Sky Villa was pulled out of the debris. She was trapped under the broken beam on the sixth floor for 65 hours.
Another survivor was miraculously pulled out alive from beneath the rubble of a collapsed hotel in central Myanmar's disaster-hit Mandalay City on April 2. The male survivor was said to be in a stable condition after spending nearly 125 hours buried among the ruins of the Golden Country Hotel building.
Zhao said that after the 72-hour "golden window" for rescue, the China Search and Rescue Team would begin to cooperate with local authorities to carry out diagnosis and treatment of the injured and disaster assessment.
"As the possibility of finding survivors in the disaster area decreases, our team can assist the local area in some other work. For example, today we officially set up an outpatient clinic on the street with the permission of the local government. Our earthquake engineering experts can conduct emergency assessments on some buildings," he said.
Chinese rescue team recalls details in Myanmar earthquake rescue missions
