This is the moment an everyday hero dived into murky floodwater to unlock a gate so rescue boats could access his isolated community.
The unidentified Chinese man’s actions have been viewed more than 750,000 times on social media platform Weibo.
Beijing and surrounding areas are currently battling historic flooding, which has so far claimed the lives of at least 11 people, with 13 others missing.
The clip is believed to be from from Zhuozhou, a city southwest of Beijing in the Hebei Province with a population of around 560,000.
The man is first seen entering the murky water with a black bathing suit and what appears to be swimming goggles.
He then uses a light-blue buoy to swim toward a gate.
It is the entrance to a community which rescue boats needed to open in order to assist people trapped inside.
After unsuccessfully trying to open the gate above water, the man realizes what he must do.
He dives in and out of the water multiple times before eventually opening the route – before signaling to rescue boats that they can enter.
“The door’s bolt was underwater,” the unnamed man says in the background of the viral video. “It was located about four meters underwater….It was difficult because I couldn’t see, but after diving down 10 times I was able to open the gate.”
In the comments section of the video, many Chinese netizens are calling the man a “hero” for risking his life to help the rescue team. One user wrote that the man represents true “selflessness.”
Chinese state media outlet, Xinhua, reshared the video and encouraged its followers to “give the man a like!”
This video is reportedly from Zhuozhou, a city southwest of Beijing in the Hebei Province with a population of about 560,000.
Around 125,000 people in the city of Zhuozhou been moved to shelters due to the flooding.
In more typical years, Zhuozhou experiences moderate rainfall throughout the year, with the majority concentrated in the summer months.
As rescue work continues and rains continue to fall in Northern China, at least 20 people have been killed so far, and another 27 are still missing.
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