Earthquake hero missing for 17 days found by rescuers
The Wandong Hydropower Station before the earthquake. The floodgates are on the left.
Seventeen days after a 6.8-magnitude earthquake hit Luding County in southwestern China's Sichuan Province, Gan Yu, a hero who stayed on at a hydropower station with his colleague, preventing downstream villages from being flooded, was found on Wednesday.
His vital signs were stable and mental state was good when he was found by a local villager, CNR reported.
On September 5 when the earthquake struck Luding, Luo Yong, an employee at the Wandong Hydropower Station, chose not to escape and climbed up the dam to open two floodgates to release the rising water, saving the lives of hundreds of villagers.
Luo was rescued by helicopter on September 8, but his colleague, Gan, remained on the mountain waiting to be rescued due to a lack of physical strength.
Luo told CNR that when the quake hit, Gan helped save some of the injured.
After everyone in the hydropower station escaped, they suddenly remembered the generator had not been turned off – a huge risk – so they rushed to turn off all the switches.
Luo told Cover News that he and Gan stayed at the hydropower station that day without access to food.
The next day, the pair decided to try to save themselves and move out together. Gan, who is very nearsighted, lost his glasses during the earthquake and had difficulty finding roads. The two decided that Gan would stay where he was, and Luo would try to find help.
Luo said that before parting from Gan, he found a pile of dry moss and bamboo leaves to help Gan stay warm. He also left a small amount of wild fruits, bamboo shoots and other food.
Luo also set up a temporary shelter for Gan, but Gan was no longer there when a rescue team arrived. Gan was finally found by a villager on Wednesday. Local rescue forces are being assembled to transport Gan down the mountain.
Rescuers search for Gan Yu.
Gan was found on Wednesday.
Gan Yu (right) and a local villager, Ni Taigao, who found Gan on Wednesday
