"So surprised and touched", those are the feelings that teacher Hoang Minh Diep - a preschool teacher at Minh Chuan Primary and Secondary School (Minh Chuan Commune, Luc Yen District, Yen Bai Province) shared with Lao Dong on September 15, after her cleaning photo suddenly became famous.
The photo shows no makeup, no pose, her whole body covered in mud, her feet still standing in the mud, surrounded by a scene of devastation, but the strong, healthy appearance and optimistic demeanor of the female teacher moved everyone. They called it the resilient beauty of the people's teacher.
The kindergarten teacher recalled that the photo was taken around 3 p.m., when she and everyone else were exhausted.
"It was September 12, the water was receding, there was a lot of mud. After cleaning up the house, I and some teachers and residents immediately went to the school to start cleaning.
Going to school and seeing everything was so heartbreaking. The floodwaters left behind a scene of devastation. Most of the children's desks, books, equipment, and toys were broken.
After cleaning for a long time, I saw a pack of instant noodles and quickly opened it to eat raw to stave off hunger. At that moment, my colleague raised his phone, but I didn't care about being photographed because my clothes were covered in mud.
There was a power outage so I had to charge my phone. It wasn't until the next morning that I realized my image had been widely shared," said teacher Diep.
Reading the compliments for herself, Ms. Diep was very happy but also embarrassed by the praise.
"It's not just me. Other teachers are like that, everyone works hard for the common good. I'm very touched but I absolutely do not accept those beautiful titles for myself," Ms. Diep added.
Speaking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Principal of Minh Chuan Primary and Secondary School Vu Thu Huong said that the flood had blown off the roof, swept away desks and chairs, and completely damaged the electricity and water systems.
After the flood, a huge amount of alluvial soil buried the entire campus and classrooms. The mud was up to the thighs and could not be pushed out by the water in time. Now it has dried and stuck together, requiring an excavator.
Mud in the classroom must be treated by spraying water back in to soften the mud before it can be pushed out.
“Currently, at least 50-150 teachers from the education sector as well as local organizations go to the school every day to help with the cleaning. It has been 4 days, but the cleaning has not been completed yet. It is expected that students at Minh Chuan School will be able to return to school next Tuesday,” Ms. Huong informed.
Regarding the beautiful image of teacher Hoang Minh Diep that is being praised by the online community, the Principal of Minh Chuan Primary and Secondary School said that on that day, the school only posted it on social media to encourage the teachers, and at the same time for everyone to share with the teachers' resilience in overcoming the flood.
"Thanks to the spread of Ms. Diep's image, more people know about our school. The school would like to express our gratitude for the hearts and help of people across the country for teachers and students," Ms. Vu Thu Huong added.
According to the report of the education sector, up to now, Luc Yen district has had 4 schools flooded, 1 school completely flooded, 10 schools with landslides, 4 schools with leaks, and 2 students died. With the damage causing difficulties in the work of overcoming and ensuring conditions for students to return to school, in addition to support to overcome the material facilities, the education and training sector of Luc Yen district also needs support.
As a mountainous district, the physical facilities of schools are still lacking, and the damage caused by natural disasters makes it even more difficult. It is necessary to support and continue investing in schools in the immediate future to continue the new school year.
