12dz Chapter 1534 Casualties After the Heavy Snow
Chapter 1534 Casualties After the Heavy Snow
The first snow in Yuanlu County lasted for a day and a night, only stopping at dawn.
Sun Shan opened the door to find the yard covered in layers of snow, and a vague sense of worry crept into his heart.
I went to my shift early in the morning and, sure enough, I heard some bad news.
Inspector Liang rushed in and said anxiously, "Sir, several houses in the southern part of the city have collapsed."
Sun Shan was shocked and pressed for an answer: "Were there any casualties?"
Inspector Liang confirmed, "Sir, two elderly people and two children have died, and four or five others have been injured by falling debris."
Sun Shan had thought that the heavy snow would collapse the already dilapidated houses, but he never expected that the first snowfall would result in casualties.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "I will go and take a look."
He turned to Master Zhang and said, "Master, find a place to settle the disaster victims as soon as possible."
Master Zhang immediately replied, "Yes, sir, I'll take care of it right away."
As soon as Magistrate Wang and Registrar Wu arrived at the yamen, they were informed of the casualties and hurriedly chased after Sun Shan.
In the southern part of the city, near the city gate, as soon as Sun Shan stepped in, he saw a scene of ruins and utter devastation.
Broken bricks and rubble were scattered everywhere, and a group of people had gathered in a makeshift shed.
Among them were disaster victims and bystanders.
Sun Shan frowned and said, "Inspector Liang, isolate those who are not important."
The people of Yuanlu County have a lifelong passion for gossip and enjoy spreading it. Even the freezing cold can't dampen their enthusiasm for gossip.
Gathering together to gossip so early in the morning, they must have a lot of free time.
Inspector Liang quickly accepted the order: "Yes, sir."
At a single command, the officers sprang into action, a large curved sword held horizontally before them, and the onlookers scattered in all directions.
Compared to being a bystander, life is more important.
Sun Shan stepped forward and first saw the disaster victims sitting blankly on the ground, staring empty-eyed at their former homes.
One of the elderly men, slumped on the ground with a cloth band around his head, saw Sun Shan.
He cried out excitedly, "My lord, my lord, my house is gone! My lord, my lord, all my possessions from my entire life are gone! My lord, my lord, what should we do?"
The old man's cries instantly caught the attention of the disaster victims, and upon seeing Sun Shan, they burst into tears.
An old woman cried out, “Sir, my husband is gone! What should I do? Sir, please save my husband!”
The loss of the old man was even more heartbreaking than the loss of the little boy.
A middle-aged couple cried out in anguish, “My son, my son! You were talking about building a snowman yesterday, how come it’s all gone today? My son, my son, my son! You’ve killed me!”
Upon seeing Sun Shan, he cried out even more excitedly, "Sir, please save my son! He's so young, he can't die! Sir, I beg you..."
Sun Shan was also very saddened to see such a scene.
But being sad won't help; the most important thing now is disaster relief.
Sun Shan comforted them, saying, "Fellow villagers, don't cry. Homes may be gone, but they can be rebuilt. As long as people are alive, there is hope."
Sun Shan knew that what he was saying was nonsense, and most of the disaster victims would not listen to him.
But we have to say, this is the official line.
I glanced at the four corpses covered by white sheets not far away.
These are just the casualties in the city; the situation in the villages below is unimaginable.
Sun Shan continued, "Fellow villagers, I have already arranged accommodations for you. Just get through this winter, and we will rebuild your houses next year."
The disaster victims, whose houses had collapsed but who hadn't lost their lives, breathed a huge sigh of relief upon hearing that they had somewhere to stay. They were genuinely afraid that the authorities would leave them to fend for themselves.
As for the disaster victims who had lost family members, they remained unmoved, numbly staring at the corpses on the ground and numbly listening to Sun Shan's speech.
I felt completely numb and had no desire to do anything.
Sun Shan carefully examined the collapsed houses, which were all dilapidated and patched up in various places.
Sure enough, the snow fell heavily last night, and the dilapidated house finally couldn't hold on any longer.
Just before the snow began to fall, at the very moment dawn was breaking, he collapsed.
The victims were fast asleep when four were killed instantly and five or six were injured on the spot.
Those who escaped unharmed were simply lucky to have escaped being hit, not because they managed to get away.
Inspector Liang said, "Sir, this area in the south of the city has the most old houses. If there are a few more heavy snowfalls, I'm afraid..."
This year's first rainstorm was not only late, but also heavy, crushing those dilapidated houses.
If a few more such events occur, the southern part of the city will likely be overwhelmed, and the number of casualties will skyrocket.
Sun Shan was also troubled by this problem; this area was the most dilapidated part of Yuanlu County.
It's fortunate that it's tucked away in a corner, so people don't pass by it when entering the city. It doesn't affect the city's appearance.
When Sun Shan inspected the area, he saw it and wished he could immediately set up a demolition office and demolish the entire area.
Unfortunately, I was short of money and couldn't take any action.
Sun Shan wasn't worried that the people would make exorbitant demands and become holdouts if they didn't receive satisfactory compensation for the demolition.
In Yuanlu County, there are no houses that cannot be demolished, only houses that need to be demolished.
The late first snowfall this year immediately exposed this residential area, making it impossible to delay any action.
Sun Shan walked back and forth in the disaster area.
They inspected the collapsed houses and those that weren't collapsed. They walked around, stopping frequently, and even called in Liu Gongfang to do an assessment.
Liu, the clerk of the workshop, rushed over and was secretly alarmed when he saw the mess.
It seems that we no longer need to conduct a thorough assessment of which buildings are considered dangerous. In this area, most of the buildings are indeed dangerous.
If you can escape the first heavy snowfall, you can't escape the second. You'll definitely not escape the third.
Now I can only pray that God will protect us and that it won't snow as heavily as it did last night.
Sun Shan asked, "Liu Gongfang, look around here, how many households are still habitable?"
Of course, Liu Gongfang couldn't say that most of the workshop was uninhabitable. If he really wanted to say that, he would have to go back to the yamen and explain it to Sun Shan in detail.
If this were said on the spot, it would definitely cause panic among the people. And if the people panic, there will be big trouble.
Besides pursuing wealth and honor, officials and clerks also seek a stable and peaceful life.
So the very seasoned veteran said, "Sir, I need to arrange for someone to test it before I know."
Sun Shan nodded: "Okay, arrange for someone to test immediately, and the results should be available today."
Liu Gongfang: .....
Isn't the efficiency requirement too high?
This area has dozens of households, and it will take a lot of time to measure and assess each one.
Sir, your words are enough to make your subordinates run themselves ragged.
Sun Shan didn't care what Liu Gongfang thought.
He was afraid of a second heavy snowfall. He feared that several more lives would be lost, and that this would leave a small stain on his record.
Liu was about to ask for more working hours when he met Sun Shan's sharp, triangular eyes, which were as fierce as mountain peaks, and he immediately fell silent.
They came in a hurry and left in a hurry, immediately arranging for their underlings to come and do the work.