Recording the Fight against the Epidemic: Grassroots Heroes in Harm’s Way

Communities are the first line of defense for epidemic prevention and control.

In the face of this sudden outbreak,

there are a group of people who gave up family reunions,

for the sake of epidemic prevention and control at the grassroots level.

They are the community workers,

and the heroes in harm’s way during the battle against the epidemic.

Donghulu Community (formerly Caijiazui Community), covering an area of 1.5 square kilometers, is located on the east bank of Donghu Lake, a famous scenic spot in Wuhan, Hubei Province. During the COVID-19 epidemic, Donghulu Community adopted closed-off management, and the community workers, local residents and the proprietors committee cooperated to jointly prevent and control the disease while guaranteeing residents’ daily needs. In addition to community workers, Party members from Hubei Provincial Government Offices Administration, Tingtao Administration Office of Wuhan East Lake Ecotourism Scenic Area Management Committee and other institutions came to work in the community to help them fight the epidemic. Many residents in the community also joined the fight as volunteers.

Chen Bing, secretary of Donghulu Community of the Donghu Lake scenic area in Wuhan. Born in Zizhong, Sichuan Province, she came to work in Wuhan after retiring from military service. Chen and her husband planned to visit their hometown in Sichuan during the Spring Festival holiday. When the epidemic hit, the couple returned their train tickets and chose to stay on the frontline of the fight against the epidemic.

Xie Meng, who works at the Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, is a volunteer of Chushijia Community. She is responsible for purchasing daily necessities and food for residents today.

Yao Yiquan (first right), a second-level inspector of the Hubei Provincial Government Offices Administration, leads eight Party members of the administration to carry out checkpoint inspections, household registration, vegetable transportation and other tasks in Donghulu Community.

Workers of Donghulu Community disinfect public places in the community.

Donghulu Community supplies vegetables to residents in the community through group purchase and delivery.

The kitchenette of Donghulu Community prepares lunch for the property management workers and drivers.

Fangyingtai Community, located in Shuiguohu Sub-district, Wuchang District, Wuhan City, is a relatively old community. Ye Wei, the community secretary, is from Shanghai. She works with community workers and volunteers in the community as well as officials from higher administrative institutions to conduct phone-call screening, home visits, and epidemic monitoring. They publicize knowledge on epidemic prevention and control and provide life support, psychological comfort life and other services.

Ye Wei (third left), secretary of Fangyingtai Community, and community workers, volunteers and officials from higher administrative institutions, are on duty at the gate of the community.

Secretary of Fangyingtai Community Ye Wei visits the home of elderly people to learn about their shopping needs. She leaves the phone numbers of herself and the community workers and tells them to stay indoors to avoid cross infection.

Xie Zhimin (first left) and Pan Qiming are Party members from the comprehensive law enforcement emergency vehicle support center of Hubei Province. As officials from a higher administrative institution to Fangyingtai Community, they are responsible for the registration and disinfection of the entrances and exits of the community.

The volunteers of Shuiguohu Sub-district conduct research to provide services for local residents.

A volunteer in Shuiguohu Sub-district busily working in front of a computer.

Wutie Community is located in Shuiguohu Sub-district, Wuchang District, Wuhan City. As an old-fashioned community established in the 1970s, most of the residents in the community are workers and retired workers from Wuhan Railway Administration and their families. During the epidemic, people must have their body temperatures measured and register as they enter or exit the community.

The Party members and officials of the Publicity Department of the Hubei provincial Party committee work in Wutie Community to undertake epidemic prevention and control work.

Zhang Xiaopeng, Party secretary of Wutie Community, is leading community workers to deliver vegetables to “empty nesters” and poor residents in the community.

A community official arrives at Wutie Community to conduct door-to-door medical insurance reimbursement for local residents.

The neighborhood committee of Wutie Community is now functioning as a vegetable shop. A community official distributes fresh vegetables donated to Wuhan from all over the country to some elderly and poor households in the community.

The property management personnel in Wutie Community have been sticking to their posts for days and working with the community staff to protect residents’ lives.

Let us pay our respect to the grassroots heroes on the front lines of the battle against the epidemic!