Tributes, honors paid to family of drowned man

The family of Zeng Weilong, who died while trying to save another in a drowning incident last month in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, was awarded 1.1 million yuan ($150,000) on Tuesday.

Zeng had been working as a carpenter in Zhuhai for several years before the incident occurred on Oct 17. While driving over a bridge in Nanping district, Zeng and another passer-by, Zou Libin, saw a young man jump off another bridge upstream, attempting to commit suicide.

Zeng parked his vehicle on the side of the road, handed his cellphone and wallet to Zou, and jumped into the river. He managed to reach the suicidal man, later identified as Zhang, who was being carried downstream by the current.

Zeng carried Zhang and tried to swim towards the shore. Unfortunately, Zeng's strength faded and he called for help. Zou, wearing a lifebuoy he had found, also plunged into the river to save them, but Zeng and Zhang sank into the river before Zou could reach them.

Authorities promptly launched a rescue operation, but the following day, two bodies were found near the riverbank, later confirmed to be those of Zeng and Zhang.

16 years ago, Zeng lost his elder son, who also drowned in his hometown of Shaoyang, Hunan province.

Zeng is survived by his wife Yu Xiaoying and three children. One of the children has started work and the other two are still in school.

News of Zeng's heroic act quickly spread, prompting an outpouring of support from the local community. More than 30 associations of fellows who also come from Hunan and live in Zhuhai jointly raised more than 300,000 yuan in donations for Zeng's family.

The local government has provided discounted rental housing near the school of Zeng's children. The school also offered Yu a job in the cafeteria and waived the meal fees for the two children.