Why did the organizers of the Gansu Mountain Marathon dare to hold the event after the earthquake?

How could such a tragic tragedy because of the climate be accepted by the relatives of the deceased? And how can the public not be angry? (Photo/ Marathon live runners released)

Wen | the chief writer of Caijing New Media for ten years

Edit | Jiang Shizhou

Yesterday was a sad day for Chinese. Two academicians of high moral standing and outstanding merit, Yuan Longping and Wu Mengchao, died in the afternoon, and the whole country mourned.

This morning, it was even more shocking to see a piece of news. According to the People's Daily, on the 22nd, the Gansu Mountain Marathon encountered extreme weather. As of 8:00 a.m. on the 23rd, a total of 151 participants were searched and rescued, of which 8 were slightly injured and received treatment in the hospital. The 21 participants had lost their vital signs when they were found. The Gansu Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government have set up an incident investigation team to conduct a further in-depth investigation into the cause of the incident.

The number of participants was 172, and 151 survived. The casualties of a sports event are more than the two earthquakes in Yunnan and Qinghai the day before yesterday, and even more than an ordinary war.

Participating in some sporting events or wild hikes carries a certain risk, and it is not uncommon for participant casualties to occur. However, in the past, such events and walking sports were generally caused by sudden death of athletes due to strenuous exercise-induced diseases, or some tourists who traveled deep into inaccessible areas with poor rescue conditions and encountered accidents. The april 15, 2013 explosion at the end of the Boston Marathon in the United States, which killed at least three people and injured more than 100 people, shocked the world because of the deliberate planning and implementation of terrorists. And this time in Jingtai, Gansu, such a tragic tragedy occurred because of climatic reasons, how can the relatives of the deceased accept it? And how can the public not be angry?

Some people may say that "there are unpredictable storms in the sky", how can the organizers know in advance about the occurrence of extreme weather? What do the organizers do? It's not just about making money through events, the most important thing about any event is safety, and safety must be the primary consideration and plan for organizers. The safety, terrain and climate of large group activities in the wild are important factors. This cross-country race may encounter bad weather, and organizers with a little meteorological knowledge should consider it in advance.

At 2:04 a.m. on May 22, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake occurred in Maduo County, Guoluo Prefecture, Qinghai (34.59 degrees north latitude, 98.34 degrees east longitude), with a focal depth of 17 kilometers. The epicenter of the earthquake is 385 kilometers away from Xining City, more than 500 kilometers away from Lanzhou in a straight line, and Jingtai County is only more than 120 kilometers away from Lanzhou. At the time of the earthquake, residents of Lanzhou, Baiyin, including Jingtai County, felt a strong sense of earthquake.

Extreme weather tends to occur after earthquakes. At 5 o'clock on June 30, 2012, a 6.6-magnitude earthquake occurred at the junction of Xinyuan County, Bayingolinmeng Autonomous Prefecture and Jing County of Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, followed by extreme weather effects, continuous showers, landslides, flash floods and other natural disasters, resulting in deaths. After the May 22 earthquake in Qinghai, the National Meteorological Administration's official website "China Weather Network" quickly issued a warning notice: "The earthquake area needs to pay attention to preventing the adverse impact of sleet and low temperature weather on rescue and resettlement." "It is not only the vicinity of the epicenter that may encounter aftershocks or extreme weather after the earthquake, nature does not care about the administrative divisions of you humans, although Gansu and Qinghai belong to two provinces, but there is a close relationship in geological structure, and the silver that holds the 100-kilometer cross-country race is at the intersection of the three major plates of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the Loess Plateau and the Mongolian Plateau, and the geological conditions and climatic conditions are very complicated." Does the local administration have no points in mind on this point? Even if there are no professionals in the organizing committee, you can ask the experts! My alma mater, Lanzhou University, is very strong in the three disciplines of geology, geography and atmosphere, so it is not difficult to make a phone call and find a reliable expert to consult.

A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck 600 kilometres away in the early hours of May 22, and the cross-country races were still being held that morning, a decision that would be made by a disastrous and irresponsible organizer. Maybe they didn't think that the earthquake in the neighboring province had anything to do with this event; maybe they were lucky and thought it wouldn't be such a coincidence? But nature coldly gave the answer, and the answer was bloody.

The Yellow River Stone Forest 100-kilometer Cross-country Race is the fourth edition, and its publicity and promotion website attracts participants in this way: "It spans thousands of years, carries the memory and spirit of that period, and rotates through spring and summer to form a unique natural landscape." It is warm, fiery, showing its unique charm to the world, it is dependent on the landscape, the environment is quiet, the bald giant peaks are towering high, endless, it is the national 4A level scenic spot - the Yellow River Stone Forest. ”

In recent years, marathon events large and small across the country have sprung up, and the chaos of such events has a long history and has been criticized. Why all over the world is keen to hold such events, it is only because of the word "money". Holding a marathon, the venue, equipment, etc. are not invested much, but it can stimulate regional consumption, collect advertising fees from enterprises, and enhance the brand effect of the city. Under the temptation, the local government and the enterprise hit it off and started the marathon business. Held every year, an industrial chain has been formed from bidding, preparation to holding events. Enterprises that can host events are often focused on money and are not willing to make necessary investments in safety and security, event services, etc.; some companies themselves do not have the qualifications and capabilities to organize risky events such as cross-country races, but they are bold and law-based.

The event was hosted by the Baiyin Municipal Party Committee and the Municipal Government, hosted by Jingtai County, and the specific event operation was undertaken by Gansu Shengjing Sports culture development Co., Ltd. The tournament is hung in the name of the party committee and government at the city and county levels, and in my opinion, it is more of an endorsement. I have high doubts about how much the party committees and governments at the city and county levels played in guiding and supervising the event. The investigation of this vicious accident has been launched, and it is not known whether it is possible to eliminate all kinds of interference and try to restore the truth of all aspects of the decision-making and holding of this event. This is the minimum requirement of the public, and the next step should be to investigate the administrative and judicial responsibilities of relevant personnel. But no matter how to investigate, how to hold accountable, those lost lives, can never be resurrected, for their families, the sky has fallen.