Behind the Holiday Glow: Workers Powering Lunar New Year
While millions celebrated Chinese New Year 2026 with family reunions 🧧, thousands of workers braved freezing temperatures, cramped tunnels, and dizzying heights to keep critical infrastructure running. Here’s how they made the holiday possible:
Robots & Resilience in Xiong’an
In the Chinese mainland’s Xiong’an New Area, utility teams deployed AI-powered robots 🤖 to inspect 11.75 km of underground cables—10 meters below the surface—ensuring stable power for 500,000 households. ‘It’s like maintaining a city’s nervous system,’ said engineer Li Wei, 28, who skipped his first reunion in five years.
Highway High-Wire Act
Jiangsu Province saw crews rebuild 1,053 km of 500-kilovolt power lines above a major highway during the holiday’s brief traffic lull. ‘Think of it as LEGO with lightning,’ laughed project lead Zhang Mei, 31. ‘One wrong move and…’ 🔌💥
Cliffhangers on the Rails
Railway teams scaled 60-meter cliffs during 30-minute maintenance windows to clear rocks threatening high-speed trains. ‘We’re the ninjas of the tracks,’ said safety officer Chen Hao, 29, whose team safeguarded 12 million travelers. 🚄✨
These stories remind us: while red envelopes 🧧 symbolize luck, true fortune this Lunar New Year came from those who worked in the shadows.
