15 years on, Wenchuan survivors helping others in need

During a search and rescue operation in Wandong village, which is halfway up a mountain, Zhang found a grandmother and a 2-month-old baby sitting by the ruins of their house. The baby's mother and grandfather had been severely injured, and were later airlifted by helicopter to hospital.

With the road to the outside world cut off, Zhang had to help the grandmother and the baby reach safety via a rescue route that the brigade had opened up.

"The baby's head had been bruised during the earthquake, but his injuries were not serious. His grandmother had not eaten for a day and was weak, so I held him carefully. He soon fell asleep and did not wake up until we crossed the river and reached safety," Zhang said.

A photo of him tenderly holding the baby went viral on social media. People noticed the word "Wenchuan" on his left armband, which indicated that he was from the Wenchuan Brigade, and he was lovingly dubbed "Wenchuan Brother".

"I think people were touched because they were glad that people affected by the Wenchuan earthquake were back on their feet, and can now take on the responsibility of helping others," he said. "Although 15 years have passed, we have never forgotten the help we got back then."

Gou Qi, Zhang's team leader, said that the ability of fire departments to search for survivors after earthquakes has significantly improved over the past 15 years.

"Unlike the search and rescue teams that depended on manual labor and simple tools to rescue people in 2008, we are now better equipped and trained than ever," Gou said.

Although Zhang's daily schedule is packed with training sessions, including ways to break into collapsed houses and fight wildfires, he hopes he never has to put his skills to use. "I was only a child during the Wenchuan earthquake, but now I have grown up, so when disasters happen, I won't let the people down."