Never giving up hope

On April 2, at the Sky Villa apartment rescue site in Mandalay, Chen experienced one of the most heartbreaking moments of her career.

The team received a request for help — a young woman was still alive under the rubble of Building 107. After two nights of planning, they were ready with equipment and a demolition plan, but the landlord, fearing further collapse and other unknown reasons, refused their aid.

"We detected life signals, but could only watch her life slip away. The next day, she was found dead, but her body was not yet decayed. This means that if we hadn't been hindered, she might have survived," Chen said, tearing up at the memory.

Despite this sorrow, Chen continued to support both victims and her team emotionally. The Chinese team's professional equipment and experience were crucial for the rescue mission. Chen, acting like a "mother", worried about her teammates' food, sleep and emotional well-being, providing full-body disinfection for them late at night to prevent potential infection risks.

Chen expressed admiration for Wolfpack Emergency Response leader Chen Jianming, whose leadership she and her teammates deeply respected.

"That's why we're called the Wolfpack, and he's our 'Alpha'," she said. Chen Jianming, an artist who loves landscape painting, infused the rescue with a "wolf spirit" — keen, united and never giving up.

"Captain Chen always makes the right decisions in critical moments," Chen Ying said. "He predicts rescue trends years ahead. When others are still on motorcycles, he's already driving a car."