Warm memories in the cold winter

Shanghai plumber repairs 1,000 water meters in three days

Qiu Tianpei's frost-bitten and swollen fingers are wrapped in band-aids. [Photo/WeChat]

The image of a pair of frost-bitten and swollen hands patched by several water-proof plastic band-aids went viral on instant messaging app WeChat during the recent extreme cold.

Qiu Tianpei, a plumber with Shanghai SMI Water Supply Company, repaired about 1,000 water meters in three days from January 25 to 27 when below freezing temperature smashed the glass of many water meters. Qiu usually repairs so many water meters in a month.

"Wearing gloves doesn't help because they will be soaked in water in minutes. It's worse than working bare-hand," said the 47-year-old migrant worker. "It doesn't matter how cold it is, we have to deal with emergency calls first."

The huge workload caused by the extreme cold meant Qiu had to delay his plan to return to his hometown to be with his family during the Chinese New Year, which this year falls on Feb 8.

Many Internet touched by Qiu's disfigured hands said he should get a pay rise, while others questioned the quality of water meters.