The old man lived in a tin house for 5 years! When is the head?, Geological disasters have caused hundreds of people to relocate and be affected by the disaster | settling down | number of people
As the saying goes, only by living in peace can one enjoy their career. If the disaster stricken people have been living in makeshift iron houses for many years, unable to return to their old houses, and their new homes have not been settled, it is truly a heart wrenching thing. In Zhudi Village, Miaoqian Town, Liancheng County, Longyan City, Fujian Province, there are over 100 households and nearly 500 people facing such difficulties.
Recently, local villagers reported to the Voice of China News Hotline 400-800-0088 that in September 2018, a natural village in Zhudi Village had to relocate due to geological disasters. Hundreds of villagers were concentrated in a temporary resettlement site in Miaoqian Town, where they lived in simple tin houses or dilapidated office buildings for almost 5 years. There is no clear schedule for when they can move into a new house.
At the temporary resettlement site for the disaster stricken population in Zhudi Village, some elderly people have lived in tin houses for many years
Multiple elderly people affected by the disaster live in simple tin houses
In September 2018, more than a hundred households affected by geological disasters in Zhudi Village, Miaoqian Town, Liancheng County, Fujian Province were resettled by the local government in the living area of an old power plant in Miaoqian Town, 12 kilometers away from Zhudi Village. Some villagers lived in four rows of simple iron houses, while others lived in a dilapidated two-story old office building of a power plant.
On July 25th, a reporter from Voice of China arrived at this temporary resettlement site. It was lunchtime, and an elderly man with silver hair was cooking noodles on the induction cooker outside the tin house. Several villagers said that living in tin houses can be endured in winter, but the most difficult time is in summer. "It's just very hot, like I can hardly get in at noon."
The scorching heat is unbearable, and some villagers have spent money to install air conditioning in their iron houses, while more villagers have bought floor to ceiling fans. An elderly person told reporters that they have been living in a tin house for almost 5 years.
Villager 1: When it rains, it will leak.
Villager 2: This tin house is not very good anymore, it will leak rain. You see, it's all very rusty. You can see at a glance that it's not even easy to live in.
The living environment of a disaster stricken villager in a simple tin house in Zhudi Village
The reporter visited multiple households living in tin houses. A villager who had just finished lunch invited the reporter into his room, which was only a few square meters. Inside, pots, pans, refrigerators, small televisions and other daily necessities were crowded in every corner, with messy wires and clothes hanging ropes everywhere, leaving only space for people to move around.
Villager: Just like me alone, living in a tin house. Like these elderly people who live alone, they also live in tin houses. There may be over 100 people.
Villager: Yes! There are over 100 people, old and young, in total.
There are not only elderly people but also children living in tin houses.
Child: Second grade.
Child: It's right on that table.
Child: Yes.
In a simple tin house, a child's award certificate is pasted on the wall
When can the new village be built for resettlement?
Affected population: slow progress
In addition to the tin houses, some villagers are also housed in the office buildings of the old power plant.
Qiu Yuyun, a seventy year old man who once served as a village cadre, said, "Look, isn't that leaking rain? It's leaking everywhere."
Qiu Yuyun: Over thirty years ago, in the office of a power plant, there was an electric light and a fan.
Starting from February 2019, the local government began distributing temporary resettlement transitional fees of 380 yuan per person per month, mainly for villagers renting houses outside. The transition fee has been collected for nearly 5 years, but the new house still hasn't been affected.
"I must be in a hurry! My family of more than ten has nowhere to live when we come back for the Chinese New Year. My grandchildren are four or five, and we only have one bed when we come back. How can we live here? My mother-in-law is in her 80s and has been living here for several years without any relatives. My brother hasn't come to my house for years, and there's nowhere to go. It's just a tin house," a villager told reporters.
In fact, in the original manganese mine living area of Miaoshang Village in Miaoqian Town, not far from the temporary resettlement site, the Liancheng County government has planned to build a 50 acre Zhudi Village disaster relief new village, but the progress of the new village construction is slow.
Villager 1: Where is the cover! Yes, there is, but it's hard to say when it will be covered.
Villager 2: After dragging on for so many years, the construction of houses there only started this year. Oh no!
Although the construction of new houses is underway, several villagers have told reporters that the local government has not seen any public announcements on paper regarding the overall relocation and resettlement plan for villagers, and the relevant information is not transparent enough. Qiu Yuxin, the chairman of the village council for the relocation and resettlement of Shangzhudi Natural Village, said frankly, "The resettlement plan has not been made public yet. The construction of the house has started this year, but the progress is very slow, with only a few people working."
Public information shows that a geological disaster occurred in Zhudi Village in September 2018. The Liancheng County government had already decided to relocate the entire village in November of that year, but it was not until December 2022 that the new village construction was initiated. Why did the local government decide to relocate the entire village for 4 years before starting the construction of the new village? How is the current construction progress?
A villager in his 80s said that during the five years at the temporary resettlement site, several elderly people have passed away in the village. "I'm over 80 years old, and now the construction of new houses is on hold. What's going on? We can't figure it out!"
Several elderly people affected by the disaster in Zhudi Village live in the office building of the old power plant in the temporary resettlement site
At present, the most urgent need for new housing placement is for these elderly people. Although the local government has issued temporary resettlement fees, due to traditional customs, the elderly find it difficult to rent a house outside and can only live in rudimentary iron houses. There are also some elderly people living in old houses clearly designated as dangerous areas.
The government of Miaoqian Town has erected warning signs such as "Dangerous areas, please do not approach, temporarily resettled villagers are not allowed to move back" and "Disaster danger, please do not approach" in several prominent locations in the village, but some villagers still return to live in the village.
The danger warning sign erected at the entrance of Zhudi Village
Centenarians have nowhere to live and return to their old homes
Journalist's on-site visits
Villager Qiu Yuxin's mother is 100 years old this year, and the elderly person lives in their own old house in the village. The reporter saw severe cracks appearing in multiple parts of the room, with the widest crack being enough to extend into a finger. Ms. Luo, the daughter-in-law of the centenarian, said that the elderly are already old and afraid of unexpected situations. Although they know the danger at home, the family still takes risks and goes home to live according to the elderly's wishes.
Ms. Luo: This is my mother-in-law. Look at how old you are, they don't allow us to rent a house outside!
Ms. Luo: Yes, we don't have a place to live.
The centenarians affected by the disaster in Zhudi Village have returned to their homes to live, and the village has been designated as a dangerous area as a whole
The investigation report commissioned by the local government department to the Eighth Geological Brigade of Fujian Province shows that on September 5, 2018, multiple areas in Shangzhudi Natural Village experienced varying degrees of ground subsidence, cracking, uplift, and displacement of building walls. The slope on the south side of the village has caused ground collapse, with a diameter of 9-10 meters and a visible depth of about 2 meters. The prevention and control recommendations provided in the report suggest adopting measures such as relocation and reconstruction in different locations.
The steel bars at the site of resettlement in the new village have rusted
Management personnel: The construction site is almost shut down
Public information shows that on December 23, 2022, more than 4 years after the geological disaster, the Miaoqian Town Government held the groundbreaking ceremony for the Zhudi Village New Rural Demonstration Community project. The start date announced on the project site is January 13th of this year, and the completion date is June 30th, 2025.
The reporter saw at the construction site that several three story buildings had been capped, but there were not many workers on site. The on-site management told reporters that due to a lack of money, the construction site is almost in a state of shutdown. "The construction site is about to shut down. If we don't pay, what if we don't stop? Look at the steel bars on the site, how much manpower and material resources we have spent here. The steel bars have rusted and can only be dragged like this."
Construction site of Zhudi Village's disaster relief resettlement new village
A construction worker in the project department also told reporters that he and several colleagues stayed here for two months, and had already left two waves of workers before. The reporter learned that the construction site has not completed the planned progress.
Fu Zhitong, Secretary of the Party Committee of Miaoqian Town, Liancheng County, explained that the government has issued transitional resettlement fees. Some villagers, in order to save money, did not rent a house, but chose to live in temporary resettlement sites that are free of charge for water and electricity. "Some villagers are still in transitional temporary resettlement sites because they are considering frugality, and we pay for water and electricity bills. Therefore, some people choose not to rent houses and are still in transitional resettlement sites."
Regarding the slow progress of the new village construction project, Fu Zhitong stated that more than 120 households and 480 people in Zhudi Village need to be resettled in the new village. Previously, the site selection and design plan for the new village project had delayed a lot of time.
"It has indeed been a bit long, but in order to solve this problem in our county, most of it is borne by the county finance. Last year, the fiscal revenue of Liancheng County was less than 1 billion yuan, and we need a lot of courage to allocate 100 million yuan." Fu Zhitong said.
Overview of the New Village Project for Disaster Resettlement in Zhudi Village, Miaoqian Town, Liancheng County
It is reported that in order to solve the resettlement problem of the disaster stricken population in Zhudi Village, Liancheng County has obtained some project funds from the Fujian Provincial Department of Housing and Urban Rural Development, but still faces a significant funding gap. At present, the local government is raising funds from multiple sources to accelerate the construction of new village resettlement projects. The proposed resettlement plan will be made public as soon as possible. In addition, the local authorities also stated that they will properly arrange for the elderly who are still living in temporary resettlement sites. However, there is no exact timetable for when the affected population can move into the new resettlement homes. Voice of China will continue to monitor the progress of the matter.
