Photo: From Shanxi Daily.

On Monday, authorities in Datong, North China's Shanxi Province, said they sincerely accept public criticism and will reward two sanitation workers for spending four hours searching for a child's watch out of eight tons of garbage. The authorities said the two workers were not exposed to outdoor sunlight while doing the work and the tourist they helped is an ordinary person without privilege.

According to media report, a female tourist surnamed Lu and her family, who lives in South China's Shenzhen, arrived in Datong in North China's Shanxi Province by high-speed train from Shanxi's Taiyuan on July 1. Her child put a children's watch in a clean paper trash bag on the train and forgot to take it when they got off. 

The next morning, Lu called the hotline number 12345, which serves as the primary channel for Chinese residents to voice their concerns, to seek help from the Datong Urban Management Bureau. Then, two sanitation workers spent four hours searching through eight tons of garbage by hand and finally found the watch.

On July 2, the watch was given back to Lu, who was very touched and shared the experience online on July 6. Local media reported the incident as a typical case of "responding to the needs of the public" on July 8, which later triggered widespread discussion.

The incident became a trending topic on Chinese social media on Sunday evening, with netizens questioning if it was necessary to waste manpower searching for a children's watch. Others questioned if the two sanitation workers received any extra rewards and whether Lu has a special background.

In response, Deputy Director of the Datong Urban Management Bureau Xiao Zhigang said all issues referred through the 12345 hotline are handled without overthinking whether it is worth it, and added that Lu is just an ordinary tourist with no special status. ''Both local residents and visitors will be provided with assistance,'' Xiao said, as reported by People's Daily.

Xiao also said the bureau sincerely accepted the criticism from the public over the incident, noting there will be some rewards for the two sanitation workers. 

Regarding the specifics of the rewards, Wang Jun, the manager of the sanitation company which the two personnel worked for said that the company will establish a "Helping Others" fund to provide incentives to the two sanitation workers and other employees who are willing to help others.

The company staff Wen Dong, who was in contact with Lu over the incident, said the sanitation workers searched through the garbage in an indoor area similar to a factory, which is equipped with ventilation systems with no exposure to direct sunlight.

According to Wen, during the search, Lu told them to stop the search if they won't find the watch. However, since the workers had already spread out the garbage and the watch had a tracking feature that made a "beeping" sound, they decided to keep looking.

After the watch was found, Lu sent Wen a reward via Wechat as a token of appreciation for the two sanitation workers, but Wen felt that this was part of their job so he did not receive it. 

Because they had previously helped citizens find items such as medicine, keys, mobile phones, and cochlear implants in the trash without charging any fees, there was no precedent for accepting payment, Wen said. Currently, the two sanitation workers are back to their regular duties.

Global Times