By He Na (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-05-22 07:39

CHENGDU: Zhang Kaifu, the oldest survivor in Beichuan county, has no memory of his grandson digging him out of the rubble with his bare hands, and troops carrying him over a mountain to hospital.

Zhang, 95, is now being looked after by doctors and nurses at No 13 People's Hospital in Chengdu. He suffered a fractured leg.

His 59-year-old grandson, Zhang Guiqing, has repeatedly apologized to hospital staff for his grandfather's behavior. He also suffers from Alzheimer's disease and has been giving the staff a difficult time.

But the staff are taking it in good grace, and are deeply touched by the grandson's rescue efforts.

"When the earthquake struck, the only person on my mind was my grandfather. He has taken care of me since I was 8 years old when both my parents died," Zhang said.

Zhang's hometown is Qushan, Beichuan county. He was working in the fields at the time of the earthquake.

"Everything was shaking and the earth began to crack open. I realized immediately it was an earthquake.

"I ran home, about 1 km away. I knew my grandfather would still be in bed.

"When I arrived our three-story building had already collapsed," Zhang said.

He broke into the bedroom on the first floor and found his grandfather had been buried by the rubble.

"I began to dig with my bare hands and cried when I managed to extricate him," Zhang said.

His grandfather was in need of hospital treatment, but all the roads were blocked.

"I moved him to a comparatively safe area and shouted for help," Zhang said.

He said 12 soldiers from Yunnan province had reached the town. The soldiers spotted them and immediately went to their aid.

They put the elder Zhang's legs in splints and carried him to Chenjiaba where an ambulance was waiting to take him to a hospital in Mianyang. It took the soldiers three hours to trek the 25 km distance over mountain paths.

He was transferred to No 13 People's Hospital in Chengdu on Sunday.

When he regained his strength his first words to the hospital staff were: "Go away, I want to leave, I am not ill."

He calmed down when he saw his grandson.