Firefighters aim high in protecting palace on "roof of the world"

LHASA, March 25 (Xinhua) -- For hundreds of years, it had been customary for Tibetan Buddhists to worship in the Potala Palace with butter lamps alight in their hands.

But for firefighter Champa Chophel, even the smallest flame can be catastrophic for the palace, known as a "pearl on the roof of the world."

Born in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, Champa Chophel grew up at the foot of the Potala Palace and is now the chief of the fire station guarding the structure.

Every day, firefighters patrol the palace for more than 10 hours, each walking more than 25,000 steps on average.

About 3,700 meters above sea level, the palace buildings stand as high as 115 meters from the ground. Inside the buildings, there are narrow passages and steep stairways. Footprints left by firefighters cover every corner of the palace.

"After the palace is closed in the afternoon, we start our patrols together with the palace management staff. Every place must be covered to leave no potential danger unattended," said Champa Chophel.

The Potala Palace was built by Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo in the seventh century and expanded in the 17th century. The palace was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994 and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Tibet. It holds a collection of invaluable scriptures, historical documents and precious relics, including statues, paintings and frescoes.

However, the mainly wood-and-stone buildings and the cultural relics contained inside are fragile when exposed to flames.

Throughout its history, the Potala Palace has suffered several fires, with the latest occurring in June 1984 due to an electrical fault. The day after the fire, a firefighting team was established to protect the palace.

Thanks to the relentless efforts of the firefighters including Champa Chophel, no fire has since broken out.

Over the past years, the fire department has taken a raft of measures to optimize its working mechanism and introduce high-tech equipment, including a short-circuit detection system and an automatic thermometer system, to ensure the safety of the palace.

Champa Chophel said that in the past, firefighting mainly relied on water or solonetz. Now, water, powder and gas-based fire extinguishers are used in different situations to offer the maximum protection for cultural relics.

Considering the unique structure of the palace and its large elevation drop, firefighters have preset fire hoses that can decrease rescue time by at least five minutes.

As advised by the fire department, thousands of butter lamps in the main buildings of the Potala Palace were moved to a special room near the ground several years ago.

Having served in the team for about 10 years, Champa Chophel said the layout of the palace has long been imprinted on his mind, and he knows the accurate position of every room, passage and piece of equipment.

He said he is so familiar with everything there that guarding the palace is just like guarding his own home.

"Protecting it has become my habit," he said.