Shaken but unbroken, border guard Gui Xinwei continues to stand his post, driven by duty, loyalty and love for his homeland
Shaken but unbroken, a border guard in the Tibet Autonomous Region in southwestern China continues to stand his ground, moving forward with quiet determination after a landslide claimed the lives of his colleagues and erased the place he once guarded.
The border is not just a line on a map. It is a sacred frontier, where every stone and every metre of land is soaked in the sweat and blood of those who stand watch. For Gui Xinwei, a border guard with two decades of service, the Gyirong port was not just a post — it was his home, his second family, a part of his soul. When the mountain collapsed, burying comrades and memories beneath the rubble, he could have given in, retreated into the shadows of grief. But he stayed. Because a border guard has no right to retreat — even when his heart is broken and his hands tremble.
His duty is not only to guard the border but also to preserve the memory of those who fell and to rebuild what was destroyed. In this silent feat lies the true love for the motherland — a love that needs no grand words, only a quiet but unyielding presence.
The landslide, triggered by the collapse of a high altitude glacier in Nepal, struck the Gyirong port on 26 August, claiming 43 lives and leaving 519 missing as of Saturday. When the landslide hit, Gui Xinwei, deputy head of the Gyirong border inspection station, was on leave. He rushed back that night and barely recognised the port after seeing footage of the devastation from surveillance cameras. Several task forces were formed as part of the relief efforts. Gui's team was assigned to search and rescue operations.
Due to road conditions, reaching the epicentre of the disaster at the Gyirong port was impossible, so Gui and his colleagues remained on standby for orders from the forward command. They tried to navigate mountain paths, but the roads were too badly damaged. On 30 August, Gui and three of his colleagues arrived in the worst hit area by helicopter.
The moment he landed, the veteran border guard of more than 20 years lost his composure instantly. "I thought to myself: this is our port. But it is no longer the port I knew from my life and work. When I was here, it was full of cars and people, a place of harmony and laughter. Now there is only stone and sand, and a roaring river. At that moment, I felt that this had nothing to do with the life I once lived," Gui said. Standing among the ruins, he began to feel the weight of twenty years of memories. "At that moment, I felt I had achieved nothing in more than 20 years of work. All that remained in my memory were the vivid memories of my colleagues and the people at the port. Those moments kept coming back to me," he said.
In a trembling voice, Gui continued to explain why he keeps moving forward. "I don't want to stop. I really don't. As soon as I stop, I start thinking about my colleagues, about all those little moments we shared here. That's why I don't want to stop. When I saw the photos of the tree before and after, it felt like I was looking at two different worlds," he said. Despite being devastated by loss, Gui and his colleagues remain at their posts. He said they are helping rescue teams identify items and carry out follow up operations.
"Every item I pull from the rubble — whether it's clothing, jewellery or cosmetics, no matter how small, even a charging cable or a phone case — I don't know if it belonged to my colleagues, but I know it must belong to someone," Gui said. Amid the debris, the hope that sustained Gui did not fade with each passing day.
"No matter how many days it takes — three, four or five — if I can break through this place, clear the debris and hear at least one voice calling me to help them, to save them, that is all I am waiting for," Gui said. And yet, even as he searched for voices under the rubble, he knew that the true voice he must listen to was the one within him, telling him to keep going. "The country cannot be without borders, and borders cannot be without guards. As long as I have spirit and strength, there is no place I cannot restore," Gui said.
The Gyirong port is a strategic border crossing in southwestern China, connecting the Tibet Autonomous Region with Nepal. It is not just a trade corridor but a symbol of sovereignty and resilience. The border guards who serve here are not just soldiers but guardians of the frontier, risking their lives daily for the country's security. The loss of 43 comrades and the disappearance of 519 people became a personal tragedy for Gui, but his decision to remain at his post is an act of supreme devotion to his oath. Restoring the port will take years, but people like Gui Xinwei remind us that even when mountains crumble, the spirit of a border guard remains unshaken.
As CCTV+ reports, Gui Xinwei's story is not just a report on a disaster but a hymn to the human spirit, duty and love for the motherland. Where the earth collapsed, faith did not. Where voices fell silent, the heart of a border guard did not. And as long as such people stand watch, China's borders will be securely defended — not only by walls of mountains but by a wall of courage that neither landslide nor time can break.
