PB53106: Navigating the Mekong River

Patrol Boat 53106 was enlisted in 2015 as one of the second generation of law-enforcement vessels engaging in the joint Mekong River patrols by China， Laos， Myanmar and Thailand. Since then， it has played a major role in law enforcement operations under the River Patrol Squad of the Yunnan Provincial Public Security Bureau to meet the security challenges posed by the troubled waterways and social issues along the Mekong River. It is common to see PB53106 berthed at the picturesque Jingha port on a midsummer day with 17 police officers on board， always alert..

On May 25， an award ceremony was held in Beijing to honor the role model groups from the national public security system， and PB53106 was awarded the title of "Merit Grassroots Organ of the National Public Security System"for its performance in multiple joint Mekong River patrols.On September 21， PB53106 was presented the Hero Medal of the Laotian People’s Army（Class III） by the National Defense Ministry of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

PB53106 is a heralded name among the law-enforcement officers along the Mekong River. Its captain， Yan Yizhang， told the press that its on-board officers are from 11 different provinces of China， but together they form a model team famed for their shared qualities of endurance， fighting spirit， and dedication.

Most of the officers on PB53106 were transferred from PB53103， a civilian boat named "Shuangxing"owned by Huang Cheng， a family member of one of the 2011 Mekong River massacre victims， before it was upgraded into a military vessel.

Less than fifty days after the gruesome murders were committed on October 5， 2011， over 200 border inspection officers from 11 frontier and coastal Public Security Frontier Corps converged on Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture， determined to safeguard the local stability and prosperity. At that time， however， all the enforcement vessels at the service of the River Patrol Squad were transformed from privately owned boats running with such poor conditions that life on board was difficult and upstream navigation was risky. When the vessels were stranded， the law enforcement officers would come to their rescue.

Today， Huang Cheng has become a patrol officer himself in the squad， surrounded by police officers all with the same commitment and embracing an honorable sense of mission and belonging.

Stories like this are innumerable in the River Patrol Squad. In November 2011， in response to a recruitment notice calling for captains， more than half of the captains working on civilian vessels on the Mekong River rushed to sign up. After a stringent screening procedure， ten candidates made it through to the end and joined forces to protect the Mekong River. Over time， some of them have grown into navigation-and-tech savvy veterans in the River Patrol Squad.

A "Surgeon"of Injured Patrol Vessels

Yan Yizhang， captain of PB53106， is among the first batch of officers to have joined the law enforcement forces along the Mekong River. In 2011， to answer the call of duty in the wake of the Mekong murder， he left rich coastal China and went to work in Guanlei， a frontier town in Yunnan， to set up a local water patrol detachment. Yan has been involved in many initiatives， including ship delivery carrying aid to Myanmar， over ninety joint patrol operations， twelve resident training sessions for Chinese and Lao ships， six annual lookout exercises and three overseas missions.

Working under torturous conditions with high temperatures and constant noise for many years， Yan has developed severe tympanitis. At the worst times， he couldn’t hear properly due to the great pain， but still he never complained about nor flinched away from his responsibilities. He was always the first to appear on site to deal with faulty machines， and therefore has won himself the nickname of the "surgeon"of injured patrol vessels along the Mekong River.

Yan has addressed over 800 patrol boat malfunctions， and is highly commended by his foreign counterparts. His hundreds of machine troubleshooting performances have cut maintenance costs for the squad by over a million yuan. During a maiden voyage of a joint patrol operation， Yan was assigned to work on a Myanmar law enforcement craft to assist his foreign counterparts. Not long after the launch， the vessel sailed into the Lao territory， and the engine cabin hit rocks and water flooded in. Yan first reported the accident to the authorities and then promptly evaluated the situation based on his experience， then assembled all the technical officers to stem the leak. The flooding was quickly stopped and the ship came back to life again. Thanks to his immediate and professional response， the maiden voyage went smoothly for the rest of the mission.

A Steadfast Commitment to the Escort Mission

Li Tianyao， a former captain of a civilian ship， was recruited by the squad in the aftermath of the Mekong River massacre， and has since grown into a technical expert. In his eyes， PB53106， though a workplace， also has the warm of home. The River Patrol Squad has a strong fraternal spirit. The team members have set sail together for multiple joint patrols， each cherishing the same sense of mission. They have spent more time with each other on board than with their families， and as a matter of course， regard each other as brothers.