Stranded workers microblog for help
By Liang Yiwen |
February 26, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A GROUP of 804 Chinese workers trapped in Libya turned to a microblog to get help yesterday.
They said they were stranded between two cities in which there was unrest and hadn't managed to contact any Chinese organizations about being evacuated.
"Motherland, please save us!" they said in a microblog early yesterday on sina.com. The post had been retweeted more than 40,000 times by last night with thousands of replies praying for them and providing helpful contacts.
The workers from the Changjiang Geotechnical Engineering Corporation were helping construct a community of 1,500 apartments in a town before the current troubles began.
They had not suffered, as others had, from food shortages or robberies, and their construction site had been closed down and was still in good order, the workers said.
But the troubles has made many of them eager to leave.
Their SOS message was soon delivered to the China International Contractors Association, a nationwide trade organization of enterprises engaged in overseas projects.
The association passed the information and contacts to the Foreign Ministry.
Via the Chinese Embassy's emergency QQ number provided by netizens, the stranded workers got into contact with evacuation headquarters at about 5pm, nearly 12 hours after their SOS.
They were told ships would be passing Libya's Misurata Harbor, about 45 kilometers away, tomorrow.
A work leader surnamed Wu told Shanghai Daily last night that he was in talks with local people about getting transport to the harbor.
"The equipment in the construction site is worth millions of yuan," Wu said. "We may pawn it to get buses."
But if that effort is failed, the workers would walk to the harbor, and supplies of food and blankets were being prepared, Wu said.
They said they were stranded between two cities in which there was unrest and hadn't managed to contact any Chinese organizations about being evacuated.
"Motherland, please save us!" they said in a microblog early yesterday on sina.com. The post had been retweeted more than 40,000 times by last night with thousands of replies praying for them and providing helpful contacts.
The workers from the Changjiang Geotechnical Engineering Corporation were helping construct a community of 1,500 apartments in a town before the current troubles began.
They had not suffered, as others had, from food shortages or robberies, and their construction site had been closed down and was still in good order, the workers said.
But the troubles has made many of them eager to leave.
Their SOS message was soon delivered to the China International Contractors Association, a nationwide trade organization of enterprises engaged in overseas projects.
The association passed the information and contacts to the Foreign Ministry.
Via the Chinese Embassy's emergency QQ number provided by netizens, the stranded workers got into contact with evacuation headquarters at about 5pm, nearly 12 hours after their SOS.
They were told ships would be passing Libya's Misurata Harbor, about 45 kilometers away, tomorrow.
A work leader surnamed Wu told Shanghai Daily last night that he was in talks with local people about getting transport to the harbor.
"The equipment in the construction site is worth millions of yuan," Wu said. "We may pawn it to get buses."
But if that effort is failed, the workers would walk to the harbor, and supplies of food and blankets were being prepared, Wu said.
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