Zhu Keming had taken precautions. As a shepherd, he is very familiar with the weather in the mountainous region of the Chinese province of Gansu. Because he often climbs to greater heights with his animals, he had stored supplies, firewood and clothing for emergencies in a cave. But he certainly hadn’t thought of an extreme situation like last weekend. In the Baiyin marathon tragedy, he saved six athletes from frostbite.
–
It was also due to Zhu Keming that there were no more victims. He was out with his sheep on Saturday lunchtime when the weather changed. “The conditions were very unusual. It was windy, foggy and rainy, sometimes it hailed. It doesn’t happen that often, ”he told the Chinese national radio.
Zhu was looking for shelter in the cave when he saw the first runner emerge from the fog at around 1 p.m. “I asked how he was doing and whether he could still walk,” Zhu continued. The man was very slow, rubbing his cold legs and talking about cramps. “I said to him: ‘Come on, warm up in the cave,'” reports the shepherd.
–
Four more athletes showed up within a short time. They reported of several helpless people on the trail. Zhu tracked down one of these runners and carried him into the cave on his back. It was Zhang Xiaotao, who said on Weibo, “I am so grateful to him. Without his help I would have stayed out there. “
In the cave the shepherd provided his hypothermic guests, three men and three women, with blankets and lit a fire. They were later brought from the plateau by a rescue team.
Special commission to investigate the case
The shepherd’s story quickly spread across the country via social media. He is celebrated as a hero by many. Zhu himself, however, calls his act a “completely normal act of a completely normal person”. He only regrets that he was unable to save more participants in the race: “Two men lay lifeless on the ground and I couldn’t do anything for them. I am sorry.”
–
According to previous knowledge, the 172 participants in the ultramarathon were hit by hail, freezing rain and gusts of wind almost 30 kilometers after the start. In addition, the temperatures dropped drastically within a very short time. The Xinhua news agency reported that warming blankets from the runners’ emergency equipment were simply blown away. Many runners got lost on the steep terrain, the large-scale rescue operation came too late for 21 people.
The Gansu provincial government set up a special commission to investigate the incidents.
–
