Traffic police "eating snow" in Guizhou. (Photo from the Internet)
In recent days, a set of photos about Zunyi traffic police fighting against freezing weather has aroused heated discussions among netizens. Among them, a photo showing a policeman "eating snow" while having bread has been widely praised by netizens. Some netizens praised this traffic policeman as the "pride of Guizhou", but others questioned whether it was just for show. The reporter finally contacted the protagonist in the photo - Huang Xinde, an instructor of the Sixth Detachment of the Suiyang County Traffic Police Brigade, who told the reporter that eating bread with snow is a normal part of their work and there's no need to put on a show.
The "eating snow" traffic policeman sparked heated discussions online.
In a special online report, a series of photos titled "Zunyi traffic police fight against freezing weather, eat snow and stay at post" caught the attention of netizens. There are photos of traffic police setting up checkpoints on roads, helping drivers push cars, and especially one photo showing a traffic policeman "eating snow" while having bread left a deep impression. As of now, it has received 1,108 comments. In the photo, the face of the traffic policeman is frozen red, his left hand holds a piece of bread, and his right hand holds a lump of snow which he is eating.
Many netizens have not hesitated to praise the Guizhou traffic police. Someone called him the "pride of Guizhou". Netizen "qin" said: I was touched, a little sad, we should not be stingy with our praise, they are examples for others to learn from. Netizen "Night Sky" said: This is true, I saw them directing traffic in the icy cold at 11 pm a few days ago, admirable! Netizen gsc8888 said: They are the backbone of China! Moving! Stunning!
At the same time, some netizens were sharp-tongued, directly pointing out that this was just for show, and thus suspected that these photos were deliberately "directed" by the traffic police department for publicity purposes. "Snow is very cold, even those who lack water don't eat it."
The reporter investigated and found the involved traffic policeman.
Who exactly is this "eating snow" traffic policeman? After searching through the set of photos, the reporter found that on one photo, a roadblock sign read "Yuanqing County Traffic Police Brigade." Could this traffic policeman be from Yuanqing? However, Luo Shengmo, a public relations assistant at the Yuanqing Traffic Police Brigade, denied it outright when interviewed by the reporter. He said that several of the photos circulating online were indeed taken by him while accompanying local traffic police on duty, and were then passed on to the higher-level traffic police department, but he didn't know who recombined the photos and posted them online. The "eating snow" traffic policeman was not captured by him, nor was this person from the Yuanqing traffic police.
After much effort, the reporter found the original group of photos on "Zunyi Online" and the blog of netizen "Love History," thereby discovering the latest situation of the "eating snow" traffic policeman. Originally, this traffic policeman is Huang Xinde, an instructor of the Sixth Detachment of the Suiyang County Traffic Police Brigade.
A responsible official from the office of the Suiyang County Public Security Bureau stated that they were currently unaware of Huang Xinde's sudden internet fame and provided his phone number to the reporter. Subsequently, the reporter dialed Huang Xinde's phone, but Huang Xinde seemed very busy on the other end, speaking in a hurried tone: "Can you call me back later? I'm directing traffic right now." According to the agreement, 15 minutes later, the reporter made contact with him again, but the road was still blocked. He said he would contact later. Afterward, the reporter's communication with him was interrupted due to signal problems until they reconnected, at which point he repeatedly apologized, saying that there had been an accident and the traffic had been interrupted, but after his and his colleagues' efforts, "it's finally smooth now."
Huang Xinde: "Eating snow" because there was no water to drink
Yesterday afternoon, regarding the issue of "eating snow" becoming popular online and the doubts raised by netizens, the reporter had a brief conversation with Huang Xinde:
Reporter: You've become an internet sensation now. Have you seen the photo of you eating snow and staying at your post?
Huang Xinde: No, we've been on the mountain all along, haven't returned home for more than ten days. The power is out here, and we can't access the internet.
Reporter: Where are you now?
Huang Xinde: On the mountain in Wangcao Town, Suiyang County. This is a key transportation route from the Suiyang county town to five towns. My four colleagues and I are maintaining traffic order here, spreading salt on the road surface, and also patrolling everywhere.
Reporter: How did the "eating snow" photo end up online?
Huang Xinde: It was probably taken by my colleague on January 5th. Around 1 pm that day, we were still on duty and had no hot food to eat, so we used the bread in the car to satisfy our hunger. Because there was no water to drink, I grabbed a lump of snow from the tree and ate it with the bread, not realizing that it was photographed. Haha... This is natural spring water without pollution!
Reporter: Is your working environment really that harsh?
Huang Xinde: We ran out of water we brought, now we use snow to quench our thirst. What we eat is bread brought in the car, and at night we can only sleep in the car. It's cold, but there's nothing we can do, we must stay at our posts. In our view, this is all very common. Here, the altitude is over 1700 meters, almost every year we go through this, and we're used to it.
Reporter: Some netizens question whether you were just putting on a show.
Huang Xinde: I don't need to put on a show; this is just our normal work (state). Up to now, I don't even know who posted this photo online. I guess a colleague sent it to the Zunyi detachment, and then it was posted online.