Railway workers endure extreme heat for safety

Residents of Chongqing have experienced unusually hot weather since the city issued its first red alert for summer heat on Monday. Temperatures as high as 42 C are forecast to continue in several parts of the city until Wednesday.

Despite the scorching heat, a group of railway track maintenance workers insist working tirelessly outdoors to guarantee railway safety.

"The continuous hot weather makes it hard for us to breathe," said Liu Yulin, leader of a railway track section maintenance team for China Railway Chengdu Group Co. He added that it's necessary to check the rails frequently during hot weather.

"The biggest risk for trains in summer is tracks expanding due to heat," he noted. It's important to spot the problems and cool down the expanding tracks with water as soon as possible.

The team of 14 workers, wearing orange or yellow uniforms and straw hats — and with tools such as hammers and wrenches in hand — are in charge of the daily maintenance work for Chongqingnan Station and equipment at its turnout.

"Sometimes, the team has to walk as far as 13 kilometers along the line," Liu said.

He said that on Tuesday morning he noticed an uneven section on the No 45 railway turnout during a patrol with the team. He knelt on the track, which can be nearly 60 C, for a thorough check. His team then cooled the steel with water.

"The asphalt on the ground melted and I could feel my shoes sticking to it. After a day's work, I usually drink at least a five-pound jug of water," he said, adding that to prevent heatstroke, workers take shifts and rest in between. The station also prepares fruit, tea and medicine.

"It's like a stove outside," the 50-year-old Liu said. "But our work means that the passengers arrive safely and on time, so we feel very proud."

He has been working with the Chengdu-Chongqing high-speed railway for nearly 30 years.

Chongqing in inland China is called one of the country's "three stoves" because of its extremely high temperatures in summer. The average temperature in recent years is about 37 C in summer, and it sometimes reaches 43 C.