Adoler

1 day, 24 hours, 1440 minutes, 86400 seconds.
What can you do? 8 hours of work, 8 hours of sleep, and the remaining 8 hours are at your disposal, either bored or contemplating life
Hou Zhikun, the commander of the first combat squad at the Yanqing Garrison of the Forest Fire Brigade of the Ministry of Emergency Management, may have never thought that his day of work would be recorded, real and touching, ordinary and great.
Difficult to speak of
But we all know what’s on your mind
“The class monitor wakes up and goes on duty.”
At 1am, the towering mountains of Yanqing in Beijing were still sleeping peacefully under the thick night. Hou Zhikun opened his sleepy eyes, groped out of bed, and walked towards the camp gate. For the next two hours, he would quietly guard the dense forest in front of him at the outpost.
Spring is chilly, and when he went down the whistle, Hou Zhikun felt his body stiffen and his face ache from the cold. The hot breath from his mouth rolled and dissipated freely under the light. Under the dim light of the corridor, he saw the next firefighter, Cao Shengsheng, who was about to go on duty, sitting quietly on the bed. Hou Zhikun lightly patted his shoulder and said, “Let’s go, I’ll stand guard with you.”
In the pavilion, Hou Zhikun looked at the blurry outline of the distant mountain and asked calmly, “Just tell me what you have and see if I guess correctly.”
Cao Shengsheng lowered his head for a while before whispering, “My dad has been in poor health for a while. He was hospitalized due to a sudden illness a few days ago, but we are currently stationed here and it is during the war readiness period. As a member of the team, taking leave at this time is undoubtedly a deserter, but I am really worried about him and don’t know what to do…”
“Well, it’s similar to what I thought. You can stand guard with peace of mind, and leave the rest to me.” Hou Zhikun turned around and left the guard post, disappearing into the night.
At 6 o’clock in the morning, when the wake-up call sounded, squadron leader Li Xinghan called out Cao Shengsheng from the queue for the exercise, “You work hard, work hard, and we all know about the family. Although you are in a state of readiness, the elderly at home also need to be taken care of. The request for personal leave has been approved. Go back and settle down your family affairs, and then come back to duty with peace of mind. This is not like being a deserter.”
At 7:30, Cao Shengsheng, who had just had breakfast, walked out of the camp gate. He turned back and waved his hand vigorously, bidding farewell to the captain and squad leader who were watching him.
Fire protection patrol
There must be no slackening at all
March to May every year is the most crucial period for forest fire prevention in Beijing’s spring. Fire sources do not enter the mountains, and there is no fire hazard in the forest. This is the belief that Hou Zhikun and his team have always adhered to. Daily patrols are the most basic and critical protective measures for forest fire prevention. There are a total of 4 patrol routes from the Songshan Management Committee in the battalion camp to key forest areas. Firefighters use mobile and hiking patrols to ensure that they see, walk, think, and protect them every day.
At 9 o’clock sharp, Hou Zhikun and his team members carried wind turbines, water guns, and other equipment and began a daily 15 kilometer hiking mountain road patrol. They said it was a mountain road, but in fact, many places had no roads at all. As the team members walked more, they became roads.
Over the past four years, the team members of the squadron have walked countless times from Yanjiaping, located at the border between Beijing and Hebei Province, to the summit of Mount Haituo, where the core area of the Winter Olympics is located. The strong wind at the mountaintop could knock the young man carrying 15 kilograms of equipment off his back, but they still patrolled without moving. They said, “The most important thing in fire prevention patrols is not to slack off at all!”
During the patrol process, timely understanding and mastering the conditions of mountains, forests, roads, water systems, etc. is also a key link in on-site investigation. “Today’s task is to find all the paths up the mountain so that we can arrive at the accident site as soon as possible in case of an accident.” Hou Zhikun introduced the task as he walked. The patrol team on that day was divided into two teams. One team carried a wind fire extinguisher and walked from the north side of the mountain, while the other team carried instruments such as a anemometer and recorded data such as wind speed and direction from the south side of the mountain.
At 12:00, after a 3-hour trek, the two patrol teams finally arrived at the top of Haituo Mountain, which is also the turning point for fire prevention patrol. Here, you can overlook the entire Winter Olympics field. Whenever this happens, Hou Zhikun and his team members are full of pride. They gaze out here every day, have simple meals, and sometimes even conduct training in rescue exercises. After a brief rest, they will embark on the same long journey back home.
Replacing storage with vehicles
Always be prepared for deployment
At 15:00, Hou Zhikun and the patrol team returned to the camp one after another. Along the way, they would encounter inspection points set up by the squadron at important intersections. “You cannot bring a source of fire when entering the forest area. If you have a lighter, please hand it over voluntarily. It is now a fire prevention period, and all outdoor fires are prohibited.” They reminded the people coming and going.
After returning to the camp, the team members loaded all the fire-fighting equipment such as water pumps, fire extinguishers, and chainsaws onto the truck. In case of a fire, they can immediately gather the team members, board the truck, and rush to the scene to put out the fire. The firefighting equipment and methods required to extinguish forest and grassland fires in different regions, terrains, and vegetation are not the same. They cannot predict the climate, terrain, vegetation, and distribution of water sources in the location of the fire, therefore, they need to use vehicles instead of warehouses to ensure that they bring all necessary equipment and supplies at all times, in order to prevent accidents before they occur. When encountering a sudden fire, one can quickly respond, invest quickly, and put out with all their might. This is the experience summarized by Hou Zhikun and his teammates in long-term fire prevention and extinguishing work.
At 21:30, as the night fell and the lights in the camp sounded, the towering mountains fell asleep again. Hou Zhikun gently put down his sentry registration book and returned to his dormitory.
Behind the defense and patrol, there is a silent effort. They guard this place in the most simple way, day after day, 24 hours, every minute and second is an indispensable part of their lives, which is also their normal work. They are like this, walking through the forests and grasslands day by day, year by year, guarding countless rivers and mountains.