Recently, news about the closure of Humen ferry has flooded the circle of friends among people in Dongguan and Guangzhou, and many people sighed: The ferry is about to become a memory. While most people are feeling and recalling, Humen Ferry is still open normally, and all 370 employees are still completing their tasks on their posts. Liang Weiqiang is one of them. He is the chief engineer of the ship number 6607, responsible for "careing" the "heart" of the ship. This year marks his 28th year at Humen Ferry.
The ship that has been with the longest time is 18 years
"The indicator is normal". After a pre-speed inspection, Liang Weiqiang registered the indicators of all the electromechanical equipment in the turbine warehouse on the navigation log and informed the captain that he could be navigated. This is a work that repeats itself every day. Liang Weiqiang, 55 years old this year, has been doing it for 28 years. Looking back on the year I first joined the company, it seems that it was just yesterday.
In July 1991, Liang Weiqiang was a 27-year-old young man who had just retired from the army for two years. After learning that Humen Ferry opened the ferry two months ago, he felt that the company had a good future. In addition, he also worked related to ship turbines when he was in the army and had some experience, so he applied for Humen Ferry as an turbine . Liang Weiqiang didn't expect that the day the ferry would be closed.
Recalling every ship that passed by his own hands, Liang Weiqiang could still remember their numbers clearly, especially the ship with a number of 6606, because from the day it left the factory, Liang Weiqiang spent 18 years with him. "At that time, it was 'collected' it in the shipyard." Liang Weiqiang said that at the beginning, the Humen Ferry had only two wharfs, 3-Search ships, or catamarans, which could carry about 50 vehicles. After 3 or 4 months of opening the ship, the traffic volume continued to increase, Humen Ferry added 3-Search ships.
One of the searches is Liang Weiqiang's most memorable number 6606 ship, which is a monohull, about 10 meters longer than the "old" ship, and can carry 10 more vehicles. Liang Weiqiang introduced that the upper layer can carry 24 cars, and the lower layer can carry 16 large trucks. If all of them are transported by super large container trucks, they can carry 9 cars.
"For me, it is my home." Liang Weiqiang said that he has been searching the ship every day for 18 years, and every part of the ship is very familiar. Later, because the ship became old after a long period of wind and rain, the company decided to eliminate it, and Liang Weiqiang was later assigned to other ships with numbers. In 2017, Liang Weiqiang served as the chief engineer of ship No. 6607.
Reaped a lot of achievements and joy
Before Humen Bridge was opened to traffic, Humen Ferry was operated 24 hours a day, and more than 10,000 vehicles were transported every day during peak hours. After the Humen Bridge was opened, Humen Ferry was opened for 16 hours a day, and on average, 7,000 vehicles were transported every day. After 12 hours of opening, it could only transport 3,000 to 4,000 vehicles per day. When
is still operating 24 hours a day, the ferry staff was in a three-shift rotation. Liang Weiqiang said that at that time, a ship included a total of 7 engine crew, chief engineer, and chief engineer, and "care" the "heart" of the ship - the turbine warehouse; later it was changed to 12 hours a day, and the number of personnel was reduced to 4. Liang Weiqiang said that no matter how the personnel change, being careful, responsible and keen are the "tools" that staff must bring after entering the turbine warehouse.
The turbine bin is located at the bottom of the ship. Because of the operation of the machine, the temperature in the turbine bin is often around 30 degrees Celsius. In addition, the noise generated by the operation of the machine makes ordinary people feel uncomfortable after staying for a while. But for a turbine staff member like Liang Weiqiang, once he goes down, he will have to stay for 4 hours.
Water temperature gauge, oil pressure gauge, air pressure gauge... Although each meter looks similar, the position of the pointer affects navigation in minutes. In Liang Weiqiang's view, a machine failure is called a ship "sick", and they are "doctors". From the time the ship sails to the docking, even if it only takes 18 minutes to take a boat, Liang Weiqiang always pays attention to whether each scale is within the normal range.
What made Liang Weiqiang particularly proud is that over the years, the ships he handled had zero accidents, and he could solve the faults he encountered in a timely manner with the experience and knowledge he had accumulated. "This is the greatest achievement of an engine employee," said Liang Weiqiang.
In addition, Liang Weiqiang especially likes to watch the people coming and going on the ferry and feel the various aspects of life. "In the past, there were many passenger vehicles coming to the ferry. I saw so many people, which were very lively." Liang Weiqiang said that especially during the Spring Festival travel rush, I felt very happy when I saw all kinds of people rushing home for the New Year.
According to Liang Weiqiang's recollection, 1995 years ago, Humen Ferry had various food stalls next to the truck lane. People would buy one or two snacks there when they were waiting for the ferry. Later, in order to ensure safety, all the food stalls were removed in 1995.
If it is not closed, it will continue to retire
Humen ferry routes are from east to Guangzhou Nansha and west to Dongguan Shatian . The whole journey is about 2 kilometers, and a ferry takes 18 minutes. In these 28 years, Liang Weiqiang has no idea how many 18 minutes he has spent back and forth. He roughly calculated that in the 8 hours he is on duty every day, he set out about 11 flights (round and forth).
In these hundreds of voyages, Liang Weiqiang witnessed the development of cities on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. In Liang Weiqiang's memory, when the ferry was first established, the mountains on both sides were bare, and the surrounding areas could be described as desolate. Now the surrounding areas are more flexible, and there are more and more high-rise buildings on both sides of the ferry. There are also the iconic Humen Bridge and the Nansha Bridge . From the bridge pier to the opening of traffic, Liang Weiqiang is a witness.
Over the past 28 years, Liang Weiqiang has long regarded this place as his place of belonging and has never thought about the day he left. "It's too sudden, I'm very reluctant to let it go." Liang Weiqiang only learned about the ferry closure on the 20th. According to the original idea, Liang Weiqiang planned to retire until he retired, but he did not expect to receive such news.
A person's work experience is about 30 years. Liang Weiqiang contributed his 28 years to Humen Ferry. "It can be said that my life's work was completed here." In order to leave more memories, in these last few days, he took his children and grandson to experience the ferry and left photos, "I hope that when it comes to this history several years later, they will say that their grandfather has worked here." Liang Weiqiang said.
Editor: Nandu reporter Huang Xinying
