Man of the mountain

"I feed the poultry twice a day. I know it's dangerous since the chances of aftershocks and geological hazards are huge," Luo says, explaining that he has to do so otherwise some elderly villagers would return to feed their pigs.

On May 7, Luo says he and three fellow villagers went to the mountain at 2 am to check dangerous spots when there was a sudden rainstorm.

One of his most dangerous moments happened in August 2010. It was 1 pm and Luo was at a meeting in the village when it suddenly started to rain.

"I ran to the mountain immediately and saw water pouring down the road," says the surveyor.

"I ran sideways down the mountain in two minutes and phoned my men to escape while running."

Luo volunteered to be a geological disaster surveyor for his village nine years ago. He says he was young and could run fast, so he didn't hesitate to be a surveyor when his village needed him. He also works as the village's accountant and became a Party member in 2005.

"We (surveyors) are trained four or five times every year. Our village has regular drills for geological hazards to teach people escape skills," Luo says.

Luo has two children and his wife worries about his job but still supports her husband. Every night when Luo has to patrol the mountain, she texts rather than calls him, because he might need to use the phone to tell villagers to escape.

Luo receives a salary from his village for his surveillance, but it is not a large sum. For the rainy season from May to October, he earns 500 yuan ($81) a month. For the rest of the year, he earns a monthly paycheck of 100 yuan. His job as a village accountant earns him 470 yuan a month.

Because of the mountainous terrain and frequent quakes, secondary geological disasters are common, so geological disaster surveyors like Luo are essential.