Chapter 396: Chapter 325: We’re Too Small for Someone as Outstanding as Him
This was not a localized storm; the rain covered the entire Huaiyi City District and the two counties under its jurisdiction.
Shiyao County Fire Brigade.
Brigade Captain Qian Si Hai stood under the eaves. The downpour had lessened to a light to moderate rain, but his face showed no hint of joy. Instead, his brow was tightly knitted, his expression full of worry.
The rain in the county wasn’t light, but it was manageable.
But Qian Si Hai had already received a notice that the epicenter of this torrential downpour was Ma Chang Town.
In just one hour, over one hundred millimeters had fallen.
The total accumulated rainfall had even reached three hundred millimeters.
Qian Si Hai’s heart pounded with fear just hearing that number.
He knew Ma Chang Town was in a mountainous area. Torrential rain there was very likely to trigger flash floods, mudslides, and even landslides.
So he had already ordered everyone to be on standby and to prepare rescue supplies.
Political Instructor Zhou Zhuo was taking inventory of the supplies, considering how to organize things if they were deployed.
For example, the mountain roads were narrow, so large fire trucks couldn’t get through. They would have to rely mainly on small rescue vehicles and pickup trucks.
He also contacted the road administration department to coordinate logistics.
Just then, the alarm suddenly blared.
"Go, go, go!"
Qian Si Hai shouted, calling for everyone to move out.
At the same time, an alert notification appeared on his handheld device.
"Landslide!"
Qian Si Hai’s eyes shot wide. As expected, it was Ma Chang Town.
With no time for words, all 27 people from his station, plus 18 more from an auxiliary fire station south of the county seat—a total of 45 people—scrambled into their vehicles and departed.
Sirens wailing, the vehicles sped off at maximum speed.
Zhou Zhuo muttered to himself, running through a mental checklist of anything they might have forgotten.
They had brought the county’s only two life detectors, especially its one radar life detector.
Halfway there, an update came in.
Qian Si Hai’s expression grew even more solemn as he showed the message to Zhou Zhuo.
The initial report: nine households buried, 22 people missing.
The numbers weighed heavily on Zhou Zhuo. He silently urged the driver to go faster.
After more than an hour of rushing, the convoy crested the final mountain ridge. Qian Si Hai immediately spotted a sea of lights at the foot of a mountain in the far distance.
Among them, the flashing red and blue lights were particularly conspicuous.
Beneath the lights, human figures swarmed like tiny ants.
’This is bad!’
Qian Si Hai’s heart hammered in his chest.
The rain had subsided, but rushing into the landslide site was still astonishingly risky.
Such a large area, of unknown depth, and without professional equipment...
Well, there was *some*. Qian Si Hai caught sight of a very small excavator at the scene.
But this only made him more anxious.
The situation was unclear. They didn’t know where people were buried. Digging aimlessly like this was completely useless.
The roadside was packed with cars, motorcycles, and three-wheeled carts. It seemed people from the nearby villages had all come to help.
An ambulance was approaching from the opposite direction, and it looked like it was transporting someone.
Qian Si Hai froze for a second. ’Did they dig someone out, or was someone injured?’
The convoy only stopped when it could go no further.
Qian Si Hai hurriedly jumped out of the vehicle, calling for everyone to grab their gear and move up.
"Who’s in charge here?!"
Qian Si Hai yelled.
Miao Dingqiang was already approaching. He greeted them hastily, saying that Qian Si Hai and his men had arrived just in time.
Certain hydraulic and cutting tools were only available from the fire department.
Qian Si Hai scanned the scene.
It was a chaotic hive of activity, swarming with people.
Qian Si Hai said, "Mayor Miao, this won’t do. It’s too dangerous. Have them pull back first and let us take over. Besides, we need to pinpoint the victims’ locations first. We have the equipment for it."
They had to find the people first, locate them, and then decide how to conduct the rescue.
Miao Dingqiang waved a hand dismissively. "No need to look for anyone. They’ve all been found. Twenty of them, not one missing."
"Found?"
Qian Si Hai was taken aback.
’The people are buried under all this. How did they find them?’
Miao Dingqiang hurriedly pointed to the flashing shoulder lights. "Captain Qian, see those? The flashing lights mark the spots where people are buried. We’re short-handed and don’t have professional equipment. You’re just in time. Hurry and help us dig."
"It’s been almost two hours, and we’ve only dug out six people. Our efficiency is too low."
Qian Si Hai’s eyes widened even further in confusion. "Wait, you don’t have the equipment. How did you confirm there are people down there?"
If he remembered correctly, besides the fire department, only the Blue Sky Rescue Team had life detectors in the entire county.
But theirs was basic equipment; only his fire department had the more advanced radar life detector.
The city had even better three-in-one units, which were already on their way.
So without any equipment, how could they have confirmed the victims’ locations in such a short time, let alone already dug out six of them?
Miao Dingqiang said urgently, "A police dog! We have a police dog! Captain Qian, enough talk! Let’s get digging, right at the spots I told you. This dog is incredible—it hasn’t been wrong once."
With that, he grabbed Qian Si Hai and hurried him into action.
Qian Si Hai was still subconsciously wondering what kind of police dog they could have when he saw it.
Not far away, in front of the small excavator, a young man led a dog out of a pit. He gestured to the excavator operator, signaling him to dig again.
He rushed over.
He saw Tian Kui, who looked like a little mud monkey. A large pit had been dug in front of them, and the excavator had just lowered its bucket, ready to dig.
Qian Si Hai quickly stopped them.
"This whole area is covered in rock and mud. We don’t know the situation underneath. Digging like this is far too risky."
Shen Xin, holding Tian Kui’s leash, felt a wave of relief when he saw the firefighters.
There’s strength in numbers. Miao Dingqiang had already called on people from nearby villages to help, but they lacked equipment.
Especially rechargeable cutting and hydraulic tools.
Seeing Qian Si Hai stop the excavation, Shen Xin quickly explained the situation.
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