On the 9th, the child’s parents presented a banner to Huang Chao (third from left). Photo by Zheng Chengcai, correspondent.
“I sprinted over there as fast as I could, hoping to catch the person before they fell,” said Huang Chao. There was a slope beneath the cliff, covered in soil. He saw the climber fall onto the slope and then tumble down to the dry riverbed below.
Our newspaper, April 17 (Reporter Liu Wei, Correspondents Hu Kegang and Chen Guangxin) — A 12-year-old boy, after watching a TV rock climbing program, went to a nearby mountain to imitate the activity and accidentally fell 40 meters off a cliff onto the riverbed at the bottom. Huang Chao, a clerk at the Wulian County Court, and his girlfriend, who happened to witness the incident, rescued the injured boy. The boy’s family later presented them with a banner of gratitude.
April 7 was a Saturday. Huang Chao, a clerk at the Wulian County Court, went hiking with his girlfriend near Luojiafengtai Village in Jietou Town. Soon after starting the climb, they spotted someone scaling the cliff ahead. When they were about fifty meters away from the cliff, the climber suddenly began to fall.
“I sprinted over there as fast as I could, hoping to catch the person before they fell,” said Huang Chao. There was a slope beneath the cliff, covered in soil. He saw the climber fall onto the slope and then tumble down to the dry riverbed below.
Huang Chao ran over, leaped onto the earthen slope, and made his way down to the riverbed. The area was littered with large rocks. He saw that the boy was bleeding from the face but conscious. The boy told Huang Chao that apart from a bad headache, he didn’t feel any other injuries. Huang Chao’s girlfriend called 120.
Then, the two carried the boy and began walking back up toward the cliff. Along the way, Huang Chao tore his pants and scraped his right arm and leg. They took the boy to the village clinic. Upon hearing the news, the boy’s grandfather arrived at the clinic and, together with the 120 ambulance, transported the boy to a nearby hospital.
After the rescue, Huang Chao received basic treatment at the clinic and then went home with his girlfriend. He returned to work after the weekend. “I noticed Huang Chao limping and only found out afterward that he had saved a child,” said one of Huang Chao’s colleagues. On the 9th, the boy’s mother and grandfather presented a banner to the Wulian County Court.
According to the boy’s mother, their family lives in Jietou Town, Wulian County, and on Saturday, they sent their 12-year-old son to his grandfather’s house in Luojiafengtai Village.
“There was a rock climbing show on TV, and he wanted to imitate it. He took a small iron hook and went to climb the East Mountain behind the village,” said the boy’s mother.
While climbing, the boy used the hook to try to catch a crevice in the rocks but missed and fell. “He got four cuts on his head and had some stitches. No other serious injuries,” said the boy’s mother. The boy has since been discharged from the hospital and is resting at home.
Huang Chao said he had served in the military in Xinjiang for five years and had just transferred back to work at the court last year. He is in good physical condition. “The boy’s name also has the character ‘Chao.’ Saving him must be fate. Now that I know he’s okay, I’m relieved. My minor injuries are nothing,” said Huang Chao.