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Severely myopic Chinese worker found alive in ‘miracle’ rescue after wandering remote mountains for 17 DAYS without glasses, seeking help after deadly earthquake
- Gan Yu cared for his injured colleagues after an earthquake and then got lost
- He had lost his glasses and was having trouble navigating the mountainous terrain
- Rescuers feared Gan had succumbed to hypothermia after finding his clothes
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A short-sighted Chinese worker who nursed his injured colleagues after a deadly earthquake and then got lost in the mountains has been rescued 17 days later.
The earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale hit southwestern Sichuan province earlier this month, killing at least 93 people and forcing thousands to be resettled in temporary camps.
Gan Yu, an employee of the Wandong hydroelectric plant in Sichuan, was found alive but injured by a local villager on Wednesday, state-owned China National Radio (CNR) said, calling the rescue a “miracle of life.”
A short-sighted Chinese worker who nursed his injured colleagues after a deadly earthquake and then got lost in the mountains has been rescued 17 days later
Gan was on duty with his colleague Luo Yong on September 5 when the earthquake struck, and the pair stayed behind to provide first aid to injured colleagues and to prevent flooding by draining water from the dam.
Gan was on duty with his colleague Luo Yong on Sept. 5 when the earthquake struck, and the pair stayed behind to provide first aid to injured colleagues and prevent flooding by draining water from the dam.
They tried to leave the remote power plant and walked about 20 kilometers (12 miles).
But Gan — who is severely nearsighted — had lost his glasses during the quake and was struggling to navigate the mountainous terrain, CNR said.
The two men desperately tried to call distant rescuers for help.
“We took off our clothes, tied them to tree branches and waved them,” Luo told CNR.
They finally decided that Gan should sit while Luo went to get help.
Luo helped Gan make a bed of moss and bamboo leaves and left him some wild fruit and bamboo shoots to eat before the two men parted ways.
They tried to leave the remote power plant and walked about 20 kilometers (12 miles)
Luo helped Gan make a bed of moss and bamboo leaves and left him some wild fruits and bamboo shoots to eat before the two men parted.
The earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale hit southwestern Sichuan province earlier this month, killing at least 93 people and forcing thousands to be resettled in temporary camps.
Luo was found by rescuers on Sept. 8 after using fire to attract the attention of a helicopter, but by the time Gan’s temporary hideout was discovered on Sept. 11, he was gone.
Rescuers found only discarded clothing and footprints and feared Gan had succumbed to hypothermia.
Earlier this week, local farmer Ni Taigao returned to his village at the foot of the mountain where the power plant is located and learned about the hunt for Gan.
The villager used his local knowledge and went on a search on Wednesday morning. After only two hours of walking, he heard Gan’s faint cries and soon saw him lying under some trees.
It took the other rescuers several more hours to reach Gan, who was flown to a nearby hospital on Wednesday where doctors discovered he had suffered multiple fractures, according to official CCTV broadcaster.
CCTV footage showed a startled, emaciated Gan confirming his name and gingerly eating a snack offered by rescuers.