Former Fuzhou mayor Weng Fulin was a colleague of Xi Jinping for almost six years when Xi worked in the city as Party chief of Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian Province.

File photo taken in December 1995 shows Xi Jinping (1st L, front), then deputy secretary of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and secretary of the CPC Fuzhou Municipal Committee, reinforces the downstream levee of the Minjiang River at Minhou county, East China's Fujian province. (Photo: Xinhua)

Weng told a story about Xi on the flood-fighting front line in Xi Jinping in Fuzhou, a book recalling the years Xi spent during his work in Fuzhou in the 1990s published in 2020.

Fuzhou usually has four or five typhoons a year. One day in the summer of 1992, Weng accompanied Xi on an inspection of the banks of the Minjiang River where they were checking the flood control of the Minhou section.

At about 7 to 8 pm, after a local briefing in Jingxi township, they learned that a national highway had been flooded. Recognizing the severity of the situation, Xi said, "Hurry up! Go back to Zhongzhou Island!" He knew Zhongzhou Island was especially vulnerable to floods in Fuzhou.

By the time they reached Jiefang Bridge connecting the Zhongzhou Island, the floodwaters had almost over-run the bridge crossing. Zhongzhou Island was submerged and the second floors of buildings on the island were already flooded. "From the bridge, we could hear screams for help from people stranded on the island," Weng said.

There were still some trapped people across the running water. It was urgent to get people safely transferred. Xi sent for ropes to secure safe passage and summoned more than 100 armed police officers, who used the ropes to guide trapped residents out one by one. High-altitude fire trucks equipped with cranes offered additional support, and Xi also coordinated with the PLA Air Force to send helicopters for evacuations.

Xi stayed on the front lines for three days and nights. During this time, his wife, Peng Liyuan, gave birth to their daughter. Despite this family milestone, Xi remained focused on protecting the lives and property of Fuzhou's residents.