消防员礼物、祝福收不停 Greetings, gifts flooding firefighters after tragedy

A delivery man(快递员 kuàidì yuán) left several cartons of milk and rice cereal at Huaibei Road Fire Brigade in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province. The gifts(礼物 lǐwù) came with a note(纸条 zhǐtiáo) that said, "Toughest firefighters, promise me to come back safe and sound after every mission(任务 rènwù)."

An anonymous(匿名 nìmíng) customer(顾客 gùkè) had placed the order(订单 dìngdān) for the Thursday afternoon delivery.

On the same day, Fuqiang Street Fire Brigade in Shijiazhuang also received 14 boxes of milk tea and yogurt from an anonymous person, along with a note that said, "Protect(保护 bǎohù) yourselves and return(归来 guīlái) safely. You have safeguarded people, and people will safeguard you, too!"

The public outpouring of compassion came after 31 people died in a forest fire in remote mountains in Sichuan province on March 31. The dead included 27 firefighters and four locals.

Sending anonymous gifts and sentimental notes has quickly spread across the country as a way to express people's gratitude toward the firefighters and wishes for their safety.

As the gifts and heartwarming notes have become a trending topic on social media, experts said the enhancement of people's fire safety and prevention awareness will help ease firefighters' burden and better protect their safety(安全 ānquán).

重点词汇 Key word:

• 礼物 gift; present
  E.g. Qǐng liú xià zhège xiǎo xiǎo lǐwù zuòwéi jìniàn.
  请留下这个小小礼物作为纪念。
  Please accept this little gift as a souvenir.

• 祝福 wish; blessing
  E.g. Wèi nǐ zhùfú.
  为你祝福。
  Blessings on you.