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chinanews.com, pingxiang, guangxi, september 4, title: retired soldier "guards lights" in guangxi border for 30 years

written by huang lingyan

"a line with 32 towers will take at least a week to 10 days to run in good weather." recently, while walking on the rugged mountain road on the china-vietnam border, deng yiqiang, an operator of the "national flag patrol team" of the guangxi chongzuo pingxiang power supply bureau of the state grid corporation of china, said that the road is slippery in rainy weather, and the risk factor is even higher.

pingxiang city borders vietnam and is known as the "southern gate of china". it used to be a military stronghold, but now it is a convenient land route from china to asean. in order to build southern xinjiang and provide strong power guarantee for border development, the "national flag patrol team" of the southern power grid was established in 1974. after 50 years, five generations of power workers have left deep footprints on the border corridor. deng yiqiang, who spans three generations of teams, is one of them and is currently the "big brother" with the longest working time in the team.

deng yiqiang (front) leads the "national flag patrol team" to inspect power transmission lines along the border. photo by yue hao

military uniforms become work clothes

in 1993, after retiring from the border defense forces, deng yiqiang gave up the job opportunity in his hometown of guilin, bid farewell to his parents, and settled down in the border of the motherland. it has been more than 30 years since then.

in the 1990s, pingxiang city had only one 35 kv line and three 10 kv lines, so power grid construction was urgent. in 1995, the first round of power grid transformation was launched. however, there were large and small minefields and mine areas left on the border line, with many types and large numbers of mines, making power grid construction extremely difficult.

"i'm familiar with the minefield, i'll go!" deng yiqiang went out to work with the demining team. they crossed the minefield to carry out power grid construction by leaving footprints, throwing lines with hemp ropes, and pulling lines in detours.

shanzitun, aikou village, youyi town, is a place with dense forests and dangerous terrain. in the past, there were only 30 households here. without electricity and roads, the people moved away one after another. in order to protect their homes, the government began to build houses for the border residents. deng yiqiang said: "we brought electricity to the villagers, carried transformers and poles up the mountain little by little, built the infrastructure, and mobilized the people to come back to guard the boundary markers."

in the past, when patrolling the border areas, power workers would encounter border guards to check their identities because there was no uniform dress code. so the team members put a national flag in their tool bag to show their identity. since then, the national flag has become the most distinctive symbol of this team. to this day, deng yiqiang and other team members still hold the national flag, carry iron pots and food, and walk in the uninhabited mountainous area.

in the past half century, the "national flag patrol team" has experienced the construction of power grids across minefields and several rural power grid upgrades, pushing the thousand-year-old friendship pass from the first light to the bright lights. with the rapid economic development of the border areas, through the unremitting efforts of deng yiqiang and others, the 10kv power lines with a total length of more than 880 kilometers are like capillaries, connecting border cities and villages.

snake bites and bee stings

clearing the grass and trees near the tower base, checking the tower base, operating drones and infrared imaging thermometers to inspect and measure the temperature of the upper part of the tower... this is the daily work of deng yiqiang and his team members. "the line inspection is basically in the deep mountains and dense forests. we have been bitten by snakes, stung by bees, and caught in animal traps. we have to bring anti-heatstroke medicine and replenish some salt. sometimes our pants are soaked when we come out of the mountains." he told reporters.

as he got older, the company transferred him to a management position, but within a year, he requested to be transferred back to the line patrol team. "climbing the mountain is tiring, but it's a comfortable feeling. when the customers and ordinary people who use electricity say something nice, we feel happy."

deng yiqiang also rushed to the front line of the accident repair. on april 21, 2024, pingxiang experienced a force 10 gust of wind accompanied by thunderstorms, causing power outages on six 10kv lines and a transformer struck by lightning, affecting the power supply of more than 3,000 users. deng yiqiang, who was not on duty, saw the power outage information, immediately put on his work clothes, and volunteered... at the age of 52, he still climbs the electric pole with steady steps and skilled operation.

"our job is somewhat dangerous. master deng would always remind me of the safety precautions in operation, and also taught me a lot of work experience and methods." said li yingxing, a fifth-generation member of the "national flag patrol team" and a "post-00s".

over the past 30 years, deng yiqiang has witnessed pingxiang's transformation from a small border town with "one road and two rows of trees" to a golden channel for the flow of people, logistics and information between china and asean. today, he and his team members continue the responsibilities and missions of their predecessors, providing power supply guarantee for the construction of the chongzuo area of ​​the guangxi free trade pilot zone and the construction of pingxiang into the largest port for the import and export of fruits between china and asean.

the "national flag patrol team" conducts power transmission line inspections along the border. photo by yue hao

"light up" the "heart lamp" of left-behind children

after work, the "national flag patrol team" provides voluntary services for border residents. pingxiang city has many border primary schools located within 3 kilometers of the sparsely populated border. when he learned that the border primary schools lacked colorful practical classes due to insufficient teaching staff, deng yiqiang gathered young employees to make small experiments such as "fruit power generation" that are both educational and entertaining, opening the door for students to get close to science.

most of the children in border schools come from special family environments and lack parental companionship since childhood. deng yiqiang organized the class members and the school to plan a small sports meeting, which was broadcast live to allow the children and their parents working away from home to participate.

deng yiqiang also told the children stories about revolutionary spirit and patriotism based on his military and work experience. over time, the children became more familiar with the "national flag patrol team" and affectionately called them "national flag uncles."

he took the initiative to serve as a mobile electrician in border villages and towns, using his weekends to visit lonely elderly people in villages and towns and solve electricity problems. the "national flag patrol team" has visited border villages and towns to carry out "free electricity diagnosis activities" more than 500 times, and the border electricity supply has gone from "worry-free" to "better." (end)

source: china news network