A lifeline through the ruins: Tian Yuan carved out a path of hope

They have to reach survivors before time runs out.

When a powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar in March 2025, entire neighborhoods were reduced to rubble within minutes. More than 5,000 people lost their lives, while countless others were buried beneath collapsed buildings.

For Tian Yuan and his teammates, the disaster zone in Mandalay became another frontline in the race to save lives.

2025 Myanmar earthquake rescue mission

As a member of China's Search and Rescue Team, Tian was among the first international responders to arrive in Myanmar. Alongside 79 teammates, experts, and medical personnel, he spent days searching through unstable concrete, twisted steel, and collapsed structures, racing against time to locate survivors.

"The challenge of the operation in Myanmar was the strong smell of decomposing bodies in the air," Tian recalled. "Due to a large number of trapped and killed, the heat had intensified the smell of decay. Face masks offered no help."

Despite the harsh conditions, the rescuers pushed forward.

"We carefully search every part of the rubble," he said. "We never give up on any corner."

For Tian and his colleagues, rescue work is more than just a mission. It is a responsibility they carry wherever disaster strikes.

At home, they serve as members of Beijing Fire and Rescue's special operations force. Overseas, they become part of China's international emergency response efforts, deploying to some of the world's most challenging disaster zones.

22 years in service

This year marks Tian's 22nd year of service, but when his journey first began, he had little idea of what life as a firefighter truly meant.

"Before I joined, I didn't even know what firefighting meant," he said with a smile. "I had never even seen a fire truck."

Like every new recruit, he started from scratch.

"I was the first person in my training group to learn how to handle a fire hose properly," he recalled. "When I mastered that first skill, I was incredibly happy. I felt like I knew just a little more than everyone else."

More than two decades later, those early experiences have grown into expertise spanning a broad range of rescue operations.

Today's Chinese firefighters are trained for far more than conventional firefighting duties. As natural disasters and increasingly complex emergencies occur more frequently, rescue teams are expected to develop capabilities in earthquake response, water rescues, mountain operations, rope techniques, and urban search-and-rescue missions.

The expanded approach reflects China's efforts to strengthen a comprehensive emergency management system capable of preventing and responding to diverse hazards, following the lessons learned from the devastating 2008 Wenchuan earthquake.

According to Pei Hongqiang, political instructor at Gaomidian Fire and Rescue Station, the team's role reaches well beyond Beijing.

"Our primary responsibility is firefighting and rescue operations in Beijing," Pei explained. "We also carry out earthquake response, water rescue, mountain rescue, and rope rescue missions, as well as emergency deployments across different regions of China."

This team has handled more than 5,000 fire and rescue emergencies since it was established in 1999.

As one of the core operational units within China's Search and Rescue Team, Pei said they have taken part in three international rescue missions: flood and landslide relief operations in Mozambique in 2019, earthquake rescue efforts in Turkiye in 2023, and earthquake response operations in Myanmar in 2025.

During those missions, the team rescued six survivors from the rubble in Turkiye and nine in Myanmar.

The demands of the job are immense.

"Of course it is tiring," Tian said. "Firefighting training is very demanding, both in terms of workload and the wide range of skills required."

But exhaustion is never considered a reason to stop.

For Tian, disasters transcend national boundaries. "In the face of disaster, there are no borders," he said.

That commitment was put to the test time and again in Myanmar.

During one rescue operation at the Sky Villa Condominium site, Tian's team spent eight hours carefully cutting through layers of debris to reach a five-year-old girl trapped inside. The site was an 11-story residential building in Mandalay, Myanmar's second-largest city. Every move had to be measured to avoid triggering a further collapse.

Transform adversity into survival

Experiences like these have left a lasting impression on him.

"At earthquake disaster sites, I have seen too much devastation," Tian said. "They remind us how small we are in the face of nature. But through these rescue missions, my technical skills, field experience, and rescue capabilities have improved tremendously."

Behind every successful rescue stands a team built on trust.

"Party members take the lead, and the entire team provides support," said Pei. "We rely on absolute trust and seamless cooperation to win every mission."

That spirit of teamwork has become a defining trait of China's frontline rescue forces. Whether responding to fires in Beijing, earthquakes overseas, or emergencies across the country, every mission relies on coordination, trust, and a shared sense of purpose.

For Tian Yuan, dedication is not defined by words alone.

It is reflected in countless hours of training, in the willingness to step into danger when others are running from it, and in the determination to keep searching even when hope begins to fade.

From the ruins of Mandalay to emergency scenes across China, his story reflects the professionalism, discipline, and sense of duty shared by countless frontline firefighters.

In moments of devastation and uncertainty, it is their training, teamwork, and unwavering commitment that turn despair into hope and adversity into survival.