Zimbabwe student remains to help battle coronavirus

Mengya, a junior of Guangxi University of Finance and Economics from Zimbabwe, gave up his winter vacation to do his part in the battle against the novel coronavirus epidemic in China.

He volunteered at the railway station in Yulin, a neighboring city to his university home in Nanning, for the Spring Festival travel rush. He helps clean and disinfect the station and ensures travelers obey safety instructions to prevent the spread of the virus from the station.

He knew about the epidemic and made the decision to help after he was invited by his Chinese friend Li Yuzhao, a staff member at the Yulin train station, to a Spring Festival performance at the station. The pair became friends at a concert because they both love rap music.

Mengya said he is very sad that the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic has affected Chinese people so harshly and has even caused deaths. He said the railway is doing a good job in providing assistance to stem the epidemic by checking every traveler's temperature and whether they are wearing masks at all times.

He said China has rapidly adopted effective measures to isolate the infection, and support and relief efforts are coming from everywhere in the country.

"I see strong national cohesion," he said.