After the historic flood in early November, Hue city became desolate. Thick mud covered the streets, garbage was strewn everywhere, and the stench was strong. From residential areas to schools and hospitals, everywhere was submerged in a layer of gray flood mud. People's lives were disrupted, and difficulties piled up. Faced with that situation, hundreds of officers and soldiers of Division 968 quickly marched to heavily damaged areas to support people in cleaning up and restoring their lives. Groups of soldiers spread out everywhere, dredging mud, collecting garbage, disinfecting, repairing schools, houses, etc.

Officers and soldiers of Division 968 clean Nguyen Phong Sac Street, Vy Da Ward.

After many days of hard work in a humid environment, many comrades' feet were bleeding from the water, their hands were blistered, their bodies were tired from fever and dermatitis. However, at exactly 6am, they still put on their uniforms, brought all the necessary supplies, and continued on their way to the scene to complete the remaining tasks.

Sergeant Pham Vu Long, Squad Leader of Squad 7, Platoon 9, Company 4, Battalion 4, Regiment 19, Division 968, was cleaning Hoang Van Thu Street (An Cuu Ward) with his teammates. Seeing his limping gait, we asked him and Long shared: "Because I was soaked in mud and dirty water for many days, my feet got water-eaten; now my feet are blistered, the cracks are sore, and it is quite difficult to walk."

However, Long insisted that he was fine because he had been instructed by the medical staff and unit officers to apply medicine, and his teammates gave him their boots so he could continue helping people.

Cleaning at Dang Van Ngu street, An Cuu ward.

According to statistics from the 968th Division Medical Corps, nearly 20% of the officers and soldiers who participated in helping people overcome the consequences of the flood in Hue City had their feet and even their hands eaten by water. The medical staff and the commanding staff at all levels have proactively overcome this problem by organizing for the soldiers to soak in salt water before going to bed; for those whose feet were eaten by water, they were given ointment and boots to limit their exposure to dirty environments.

Officers and soldiers of Division 968 collect trash at Trai Tim Lake, An Cuu Ward.

After watching the news, Senior Lieutenant Nguyen Huu Hieu, Political Commissar of Company 3, Battalion 4, Regiment 19, took the opportunity to meet and encourage Corporal Luong Van Ba ​​(Platoon 9, Company 3). According to comrade Hieu, Ba's situation is very difficult: The family has three brothers; the father has been mentally ill since Ba was young; the older sister married far away; the older brother had a work accident, lost his arm, and is currently unable to work; recently, the mother was diagnosed with a tumor and had to undergo surgery, but the family is short of people, no one to take care of him, and the economy is extremely difficult.

Every month, Corporal Ba saves his small allowance and sends it home to his family, sometimes one million VND, sometimes as little as 800,000 VND. Despite such circumstances, according to Political Commissar Nguyen Huu Hieu, Ba is still very resilient and hardworking in all the unit's work, especially during this time of helping people overcome the consequences of floods. Ba always volunteers to go to the most difficult and dangerous places, leaving the lighter work to his teammates.

Officers and soldiers of Division 968 clean up trash on Bach Dang Street, Phu Xuan Ward.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Tung, who lives on Nguyen Phong Sac Street (Vy Da Ward), was moved when she saw soldiers cleaning up in front of her house: “This area is low, so all three consecutive floods were deep. The floods brought a lot of mud and dirt, plus the garbage that people cleaned from their houses onto the street, causing heavy pollution. Thanks to the soldiers coming to help, people now have a clean place to walk. We will never forget this favor!”

Officers and soldiers of Division 968 clean up Nguyen Phong Sac Street.

As the person who directly followed the area and commanded the force from the very beginning, Colonel Nguyen Manh Ha, Deputy Division Commander of Division 968, shared: “I am very proud of the sense of responsibility and the will to overcome difficulties of the officers and soldiers in the entire unit. Although working for a long time in a harsh environment, many comrades' health was affected, but with the spirit of 'serving the people', the entire Division overcame difficulties, helped people clean up mud, repair houses, restore traffic and support necessities for the people. I believe that, with the motto 'where the people are in difficulty, there are soldiers', Division 968 will continue to promote its heroic tradition, contributing to the people to soon stabilize their lives and restore production after natural disasters."

The calloused hands, cracked feet, dirty uniforms... are vivid evidence of the spirit of Uncle Ho's soldiers in peacetime. Amidst the mud and garbage, the image of the soldiers of Division 968 still shines brightly, simple, resilient and full of humanity./.

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/nuoi-duong-van-hoa-bo-doi-cu-ho/can-bo-chien-si-su-doan-968-vuot-len-chinh-minh-vi-nhan-dan-tp-hue-1010753