Chinese citizens ensured safe evacuation from Beirut Port amid warlike atmosphere: captain

A Chinese captain recalled an emergency evacuation mission that took place in the port of Beirut early Tuesday, saying that once passengers boarded the ship, they would be sent to a safe port.

Ren Juncheng, captain of "Xinxiamen", a cargo ship of China COSCO Shipping Corporation, described what he experienced in an interview with China Central Television (CCTV) Thursday, saying that his crew members received the evacuation mission on 02:00 Monday as tensions in the Middle East rose and waiting for over 10 hours before pulling into the port of Beirut on early Tuesday.

"As we entered the port, we could sense there was an atmosphere of a war. Conventional navigation services were no longer available, and we had to navigate by using our own radar or other radars that were still effective. Warships could be seen from afar and they only allowed us into the port after asking lots of questions and confirmed we are a Chinese ship. During the whole process, military helicopters had been flying above our head," said Ren.

The ship should have arrived at a Turkish port according to the original plan, said Ren, but they turned to Beirut immediately after being tasked with evacuating the Chinese there.

"A Chinese citizen grabbed my hand suddenly before boarding the ship. He asked me if the ship is a Chinese ship. I said I am sure that it is definitely a Chinese ship. It is built by China and there is a Chinese national flag hanged on the ship. It is a piece of moving land of China. Once you board the ship, you are back to China, you are back to home. You should not be worried. We will definitely send you to a safe port. He was really, really moved [after hearing these]," said Ren.

"Xinxiamen" evacuated 69 Chinese citizens along with 11 foreign relatives of them from Beirut and the evacuees arrived at a port in Cyprus on Tuesday.

Ren's evacuation mission was followed by another similar effort carried out by Air China, which saw 146 Chinese citizens and five foreign relatives of them being transported to the Beijing Capital International Airport at 5:00 Wednesday.

In total, 215 Chinese citizens have been evacuated from Lebanon so far, marking that all the Chinese who chose to leave the country were safely transported.

The Chinese who chose to stay will receive guidance and assistance from the Chinese embassy in Lebanon as they take necessary safety measures.

Chinese citizens ensured safe evacuation from Beirut Port amid warlike atmosphere: captain

China has seen a tourism boom during the week-long National Day holiday, and traffic hubs in major cities including Shanghai and Shenzhen are facing much higher traffic volume than usual days.

Shanghai is one of the most attractive destinations during the holiday which started on Oct 1. The two major airports in Shanghai - Shanghai Pudong Airport and Hongqiao Airport, are expected to handle a daily average of 369,000 passengers during the seven-day holiday, a 14.4 percent increase year on year.

Train stations are also pulling in the numbers. Latest data shows Hongqiao Railway Station, one of Shanghai's four major train stations, expects to manage over 5 million passengers from Sept 30 to Oct 8, an increase of 5 percent year on year.

Tourists love the city for its prosperous commercial districts, and also for its history and culture. Hot spots include the iconic Bund, the historic building of Wukang and the Yuyuan Garden.

"I really like Shanghai after the five-day stay we had here, we are just leaving now. I really like the night cruises, the roof tops on all the buildings. Really the mix of styles is very cosmopolitan," said a foreign tourist.

"Shanghai is a city rich in cultural elements. Anfu Road, Wukang Road, there are old houses, and also modern buildings. So my friends like to come to Shanghai," said a local resident in Shanghai.

Data from the Shenzhen General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection, in south China's Guangdong Province, shows that in the first four days of the holidays, combined inbound and outbound cross-border passenger trips via Shenzhen Airport exceeded 57,000, with nearly 600 flight arrivals and departures, up 58.1 percent and 55.2 percent year on year respectively. With the continuous increase in inbound and outbound passenger trips, the total number of border crossings at Shenzhen Airport this year has exceeded 4 million, up 47.6 percent from last year.

Data shows that over the first four days of the holiday, the number of outbound passengers at Shenzhen Airport exceeded 33,000, with Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, Singapore, and Indonesia being the most popular destinations.

Major Chinese cities see travel boom during National Day holiday