During these extraordinary times, the teams faced immense pressure and demonstrated remarkable resilience. CITIC Architecture Design and Research Institute took charge of the design work for Huoshenshan Hospital, located at Zhiyin Lake in Caidian. Meanwhile, Zhongnan Architectural Design Institute Co., Ltd. was responsible for the design of Leishenshan Hospital in Jiangxia Junyun Village.
Wuhan Caidian Huoshenshan Hospital became the first “Xiaotangshan Model” hospital in Hubei Province. The design plan was completed on January 24, 2020, and construction began that very day. Forklifts, bulldozers, rollers, and other equipment quickly arrived on site to prepare for land leveling.
The hospital’s total construction area is 33,940 square meters, primarily composed of movable board houses, with an expected capacity of 700 to 1,000 beds upon completion.
By January 25, 2020, the construction site was actively leveling and hardening the ground. Excavators, bulldozers, rollers, and workers from across the nation arrived to support the effort. These individuals, the true “fire gods,” rushed headfirst into the frontline, working tirelessly day and night to beat the clock.
On January 26, 2020, significant progress was made across civil engineering, installation, intelligent systems, and design. Inside the conference room, civil and installation teams discussed plans to coordinate overlapping processes under intense pressure. Meanwhile, construction activities continued energetically on site, with more infrastructure workers arriving.
After receiving the urgent call, workers moved to Fire God Mountain to ensure timely completion of the mission.
Even at night on January 27, 2020, the construction site buzzed with activity. Millions of online viewers were live-streaming the progress of Huoshenshan Hospital. Equipment like loaders, backhoe excavators, truck cranes, diesel generators, welding machines, cutting tools, formwork, and steel bars were steadily arriving. Donations from various sectors were also being directly transported to the hospital site.
That morning, Premier Li visited the site to encourage and comfort the frontline builders, inspiring the nation. This project captured the attention and hearts of countless people following Wuhan’s fight.
On January 28, 2020, the official rendering of Huoshenshan Hospital was released. The facility spans 33,900 square meters and includes reception rooms, wards, ICUs, medical technology departments, network computer rooms, supply warehouses, garbage storage, and ambulance disinfection rooms.
New container units kept arriving, concrete was poured continuously, non-woven fabric was laid, steel formwork was installed, and other construction materials were delivered in succession.
January 29, 2020, was supposed to be a day of celebration for some workers getting married, and a time for families to reunite for the Chinese New Year. Instead, many infrastructure workers remained on site, postponing gatherings and sacrifices for the greater cause.
These so-called “infrastructure maniacs” are truly a group of kind and courageous individuals. They don armor and quietly bear heavy burdens, blessed by the wishes of all.
For over 100 hours, workers from all over China labored relentlessly. Construction pressed on.
By the afternoon of January 30, 2020, more than 50 million viewers had tuned into the CCTV News live broadcast of the hospital’s construction, with growing public interest nationwide.
Netizens participating in “cloud supervision” affectionately gave nicknames to various construction equipment, reflecting their admiration and connection. Here are some of the popular names:
- Sending Emperor Gaozong (Song Gaozong) – High-rise crane
- Sending Grey Emperor (Song Huizong) – Concrete mixer truck
- Emperor Wu of Han – Welder
- Emperor Guangwu – Super bright lights at the center of the site
- Emperor Guangxu – Two super bright lights during night shifts
- Blue Forget Machine – Blue excavator
- White Rolling / White Rabbit / Ouni Sauce – Concrete mixer truck
- Dorgon – Roller
- Bai Juyi – Sample room
- Flower Arm – Yellow-bottom black-arm excavator
- Wu Sangui – Osmanthus tree under the camera
- Xianfeng Emperor – Enthusiastic netizens watching the live stream
- Regent – Camera
- Song Jiang – Concrete pouring vehicle
- Emperor Daoguang – Cement leveling worker
- Xiaohong – Loading truck with overhead crane
- Fork Sauce / Shovel Sauce – Small forklifts
- Dada Machine – Screen printing machine, also known as Jishi shout or Wanyan Aguda
- Ground Film – Non-woven fabric laid on foundation
Under the watchful eyes of all the “Xianfeng Emperors,” Huoshenshan Hospital smoothly entered the critical phase of ward installation. More and more buildings began taking shape.
By the evening of January 31, 2020, the installation of hundreds of containers in the inpatient building was nearly complete, with over half of the supporting facilities in place. On the eighth day, the hospital wards were becoming tangible, and construction entered its final countdown.
At 11:49 PM that night, Huoshenshan Hospital was powered up. The supporting power system employed a dual power supply method, installing four 10 kV ring mesh boxes and 24 box-type transformers with a total capacity of 14,600 kVA. Eight kilometers of power cables were laid to ensure reliable electricity.
This battle without gunfire was approaching its conclusion.
On February 1, 2020, basic construction of Huoshenshan Hospital was completed, and installation of medical support equipment began. Approximately 95% of container installation was done; 70% of water, electricity, HVAC, and oxygen supply systems were installed; 95% of pipeline trench excavation, burial, and backfilling was finished; and sewage treatment plant equipment was lifted into place.
The hospital construction had now entered the decisive stage.
Millions awaited the next day with hope.
After the relentless efforts of more than 7,500 builders, Huoshenshan Hospital was declared complete on February 2, 2020. The facility officially began treating pneumonia patients infected with the novel coronavirus on February 3, 2020.
Eight large transport planes from the Air Force arrived in Wuhan, accompanied by a military-civilian handover ceremony. The military selected 1,400 medical and nursing personnel to manage treatment at Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital starting February 3.
Facing challenges without fear, this is China.
We will surely emerge from the darkness, reborn from the ashes—this is China!
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