K396: A thrilling 4-day and night experience in Fengtai, Beijing. Arrived | Student Union | K396

On the early morning of August 3rd, the last batch of stranded passengers on train K396 safely arrived in Fengtai, Beijing. At this point, all passengers and their families on the train have been hanging on for four days, finally settling down.

【1】 July 30th: Emergency parking

At 17:09 on July 29th, K396 departed from Wuhai West Station in Inner Mongolia and was scheduled to arrive at Fengtai Station in Beijing at 9:30 on July 30th.

At around 6am on the 30th, the train passed Zhangjiakou Station as scheduled, but gradually slowed down.

Since the 29th, continuous rainfall has occurred in many places in Beijing, with some areas reaching the level of heavy rainstorm. On the 30th, the rainstorm caused serious water damage, and the Luopo Ridge collapsed. Temporary closure measures were taken for the line from Sanjiadian to Yanchi on the Fengsha Line.

At 12:40 noon, the train finally stopped near Luopo Ridge Station in Mentougou District, less than 70 kilometers away from Fengtai Station.

3D demonstration: K396 Adventure

At 14:57, Ma Ruixin, the station master of Luopoling Station, received a message from Yang Long, the conductor of K396 train, requesting material support. Ma Ruixin immediately led the employees to rain and deliver 20 boxes of instant noodles to the train.

But there were a total of 976 passengers and 24 crew members on the train, including a study group consisting of over 40 children, and the speed of material consumption was much faster than expected.

Afterwards, Ma Ruixin and his team urgently prepared 13 types of supplies including instant noodles, ham sausages, etc. from a village several miles away.

【2】 July 31st: Placement of Luopo Ridge

At 5 o'clock in the morning, the crew decided to go on foot in the rain to the Luopo Ridge station to transport supplies.

The train is parked about 800 meters in front of the station, which is a sloping road with water flowing down from the slope. Part time duty officer Zhao Yang and his colleagues carried more than 1200 pieces of food and drinking water back together, distributing them free of charge to the passengers.

The passengers gathered more and more in the direction of the dining car. While maintaining order, Zhao Yang choked up and comforted the passengers, saying, "Everyone, please don't crowd or cause any danger. It's because I'm wearing these clothes that I have to live up to everyone."

Zhao Yang is calming the emotions of the passengers.

On the morning of the 31st, the water level on the train stop section rose and the signal was interrupted, causing passengers to completely lose contact with the outside world. The railway department has decided to transfer all personnel to a safe area.

At 13:00, the entire vehicle completed the transfer. More than 700 people were resettled in the Luopoling Neighborhood Committee, while more than 200 people rested in the train carriages parked at the Luopoling Station.

According to Meng Ermei, the party branch secretary of Luopoting Community, the community has a permanent population of less than 400 people, mostly elderly, but now it needs to accommodate more than 700 passengers.

Mantou and bread stored at home, pickles hidden for many years, cucumbers and eggplants picked in the fields... The residents brought out all the food they could eat to the passengers, and distributed candy and biscuits to the children in addition.

Meng Ermei was interviewed. The rainstorm caused the community to stop drinking water. Several residents went to Nanshan to find water and came back to cook porridge for the passengers. The residents said, "If we have a bite to eat, we cannot let them go hungry."

There are not many places available for accommodation in the community. Community halls, corridors, residents' homes, and cars are all places for passengers to stay, while the children of the study group are placed in spacious libraries.

A passenger said, "An elderly family has taken in food and accommodation for nine of us, and he has to go and help more people."

At around 18:30, 40 vanguard members of the Beijing Armed Police Force went to rescue. Due to railway damage, it is impossible to continue moving forward, and rescue supplies have been changed to airdrops.

【3】 August 1st: Leaving the resettlement site

Residents told passengers that although many roads were damaged due to the rainstorm, the abandoned railway track was still accessible, but it was certainly not easy to walk. Some passengers decided to walk out, find a feasible path, and report safety to their families.

On August 1st, the rain did not stop. At 5:30 in the morning, as soon as dawn broke, someone formed a team and set off. Around 6 o'clock, Mr. Zhao also embarked on the journey back with a dozen or so people.

The road is slippery and muddy, making it difficult to travel. It also requires passing through many collapsed areas and passing through several black and long tunnels.

The nearby roads are severely damaged.

Mr. Zhao described the difficult journey to the reporter: "When the road is broken, we follow the railway. The railway is also broken, so we climb mountains and drill through the forest. If we can't walk anymore, we'll look for the road. If we can't find the road, we'll look for the railway again."

Around 15 o'clock, Mr. Zhao arrived at Seshufen Village and made contact with the outside world.

Ms. Qu, who is 18 years old, was one of the first to depart when they encountered rescue workers repairing railways on the way. "They told us about the road ahead and suggested that we take off our shoes and walk in the mud." After 9 hours, Ms. Qu and her companions finally landed at a hotel.

Some passengers also walked from the resettlement site to the Mentougou District Government, introducing the current situation inside the resettlement site to government personnel and indicating their hiking route for subsequent rescue.

On that day, dozens of people walked out of the resettlement site on foot. On the way, many people saw helicopters airdropping supplies.

Helicopters for airdropped supplies.

They also brought valuable news to the families of other passengers, saying, "Everyone is good and safe."

At around 18:00, 40 commandos from the Mobile Third Brigade of the Beijing Armed Police Force arrived at the Luopo Ridge Station on foot after 4 hours, delivering the first batch of rescue supplies to passengers on train K396.

At 22:50, 500 armed police soldiers arrived with food, clothing, and medicine for reinforcements.

【4】 August 2nd: Getting out of poverty and returning home

"At 12 o'clock, I knocked on the door and started queuing. We set off at around 2 o'clock. We walked in line, one on one." After losing contact with our parents for two days, Ms. Guan received another WeChat message from her mother at 5 or 6 o'clock on the morning of the 2nd.

After the reinforcements arrived at Luopo Ridge on the evening of the 1st, personnel transfer work immediately began. The passengers of K396 are divided into three batches and walk outside.

After several hours of road repairs, the mud on the road, which was originally knee deep, now only reaches the ankles, but it is still difficult to walk. The rescue adopts a one-on-one assistance form, and each passenger is escorted forward by a armed police officer.

The first batch of 328 poverty-stricken passengers departed at 2am, with Ms. Guan's parents in the 6th squad.

The first batch of stranded passengers are on their way.

With the help of the armed police officers and soldiers, they walked through rugged roads, long tunnels, and suspended railways, and finally arrived at the Xiehejian Station four or five hours later. The connecting train is waiting there to transport them to Fengtai.

Ms. Guan told me that at around 8 o'clock in the morning, Ms. Li received her mother at Fengtai Station.

"My mother said she was very grateful to these children who served in the military. They carried such a heavy load and helped my mother get down, leaving her feet soaking white. With them, my mother and the others were able to come out." Ms. Li relayed her mother's words to the reporter.

When the first batch of passengers boarded the shuttle train to Fengtai, the second batch of passengers also departed at around 7 o'clock.

At around 14:00, 51 teachers and students of the research group were safely transferred from the Luopo Ridge resettlement site. After experiencing such a "great adventure", the children unanimously chose to take another train to Fengtai and continue the study tour that should have started three days ago.

A group photo of teachers and students from the study group with armed police soldiers.

On the early morning of the 3rd, the last batch of passengers safely arrived in Beijing, and this 4-day journey finally came to an end.