A Taiwan volunteer guides a senior at a COVID-19 testing site in Xiamen, Fujian province. The city launched tests for all residents after a recent outbreak. [Photo/CHINA DAILY]

Sacrifices made

Su hasn't returned to her hometown of New Taipei City, Taiwan, since the outbreak began last year and was unable to reunite with her family in Taiwan for this year's Mid-Autumn Festival.

"The outbreak this time is a bit severe. We will follow the prevention and control work as required," she said. "As long as people receive a nucleic acid test and the spread of the virus is stopped, Xiamen will soon survive and recover."

Another resident from Taiwan, Cheng Ya-ping, 47, runs a restaurant on Meizhou Island, a seaside resort in Putian, Fujian.

The sudden outbreak in Putian pushed the pause button on the island's tourism industry, which was supposed to welcome visitors during the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday.

Residents were told to stay put while epidemic prevention staff were busy taking people at risk of being infected into quarantine.

In the early days of the outbreak, food was relatively scarce as people were discouraged from entering or leaving the island.

On Sept 13, Cheng and her staff made 125 Taiwan-style rice with stewed pork lunches and gave them to medical workers, police and volunteers on the front line of epidemic prevention work. "I had some ingredients in stock and I wanted to offer help in my own way," she said.

When she learned that the island would conduct nucleic acid tests on all residents on Sept 17, Cheng decided to make free lunches again.

This time, they made about 900 packed meals. In addition to the pork rice, she also prepared Taiwanstyle salted duck rice for those who don't like fatty meat as well as fishball soup. Cheng and her staff cooked the food and volunteers from Mazu Temple on the island helped with the packing and delivery.

"There was a lot of food to pack. The volunteers provided vehicles to send packed lunches to villages," she said. "Local people were warmhearted. The Mazu spirit advocates good deeds and great love."

The island is believed to be the birthplace of Mazu, the popular sea goddess worshipped mainly in the mainland's coastal areas and also in Taiwan. Many Taiwan compatriots come to Meizhou for pilgrimages and sightseeing.

Cheng, who is a follower of Mazu, opened her restaurant in January 2019 and since then has often traveled back and forth across the Straits.

When the mainland was struck by a COVID-19 outbreak during the Lunar New Year holiday last year, Cheng, who was in her hometown Kaohsiung, Taiwan, was unable to return to the mainland due to epidemic control measures.

Worried about residents of Meizhou, she collected about 200 items of medical protective clothing, thermometers and medical gloves and sent them to the island by express delivery before returning to Meizhou in August last year.