Officers endure extremes to keep Yunnan border safe

At 6:40 am, a police officer is on duty at the Menglian Gate located at the border in Southwest China's Yunnan province. [By Zhang Jing/For chinadaily.com.cn]

Whether chilly or scorching, a group of police officers take turns working around the clock all year long at the Menglian Gate, a mainland pass connecting Pu'er city in Southwest China's Yunnan province with Southeast Asian countries, to guard safety at the border. Their work has tightened amid efforts to control and prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At about 11 am on a summer day, although the temperature outside the Menglian Gate reached 47 degrees centigrade while the temperature inside the protective clothing the officers were wearing reached 60 degrees, they had already been on duty for over three hours to ensure ruling out any potential risks.

The officers worked in small groups to check identifications, as well as vehicles. On average, it takes five minutes to check one vehicle.