At 8 a.m. on September 29, inspector Wang Yuanfeng had already driven a vehicle equipped with an Easy Inspection System out of the Panjin Guohua Company of China Resources Gas, heading toward Lujia Town in Shuangtaizi District and the municipal construction section along Hongqi Avenue.

"The routes are packed tighter than usual in the days before the holiday — over 100 kilometers a day," he said.

To ensure residents enjoy a safe, peaceful, and worry-free National Day holiday, the company deployed early and took proactive action, launching a major gas safety hazard inspection campaign with increased patrol frequency and refined routes, placing high-risk areas such as construction zones and residential compound pipeline networks at the top of the list.

At the active construction section, inspector Zhang Jian moved slowly along the ground with a leak detector, opening and checking each manhole cover and valve pit one by one.

When encountering cross-construction points, he stopped to brief the construction crew on the spot — pipeline direction, burial depth, and protective distance — explaining everything clearly again and again.

"Third-party construction damage is the biggest variable in pipeline network safety," Zhang said. "One more trip, one more reminder from us means one less risk."

Pressure regulating equipment, pipeline networks, and alarm devices — these normally silent "steel beasts" are the source gateway of gas supply and the focus of station "health checks."

Staff examined the operating status of each piece of equipment and verified pressure, flow, and other operating parameters group by group. The validity of firefighting equipment and the sensitivity of alarm devices were also confirmed item by item.

"The station runs around the clock — one valve loosened half a turn, and a whole chain of problems follows," said Chen Jin, a veteran worker who has been stationed there for years.

"No going through the motions, no blind spots" is the hard requirement set for the inspection. The three key links — stations, municipal pipeline networks, and residential users — are checked layer by layer and controlled item by item, keeping hazards at bay before they occur.

On October 1, safety inspector Liang Jing knocked on the door of a resident in Shenghuayuan Community. "Hello, we're from China Resources Gas, here for a pre-holiday home safety inspection."

After putting on shoe covers and turning on the leak detector, she checked from the gas hose to the stove to the valve, one spot at a time.

"Stoves generally shouldn't be used for more than 8 years — exceeding that also poses safety risks. Remember to turn off the fire and the valve after cooking, and keep the kitchen well-ventilated..." After the inspection, Liang pulled the resident aside to go over daily gas usage precautions, from turning off the fire and ventilating to handling leaks, explaining each point carefully.

Such door-knocks were repeated every day during the holiday. Staff walked into thousands of homes, truly delivering safety services to residents' doorsteps.

Whatever hazards are found, big or small, must ultimately be recorded in a ledger. The company insists on immediate correction upon discovery, establishing detailed records for all types of hazards, clarifying responsible persons and rectification deadlines, and tracking progress throughout — find one, fix one, close one, forming a closed loop.

"If the ledger isn't cleared, we can't rest easy," a company official said.

For residents, holidays mean reunion. For gas workers, it is another "major exam."

To safeguard the National Day holiday, the company strictly implemented 24-hour duty shifts and emergency rescue mechanisms. On the dispatch center's large screen, pressure and flow data flickered in real time. Rescue teams and emergency supplies were fully staffed and on standby. Repair vehicles stood ready to respond to any gas-related emergencies at any time.

A valve, a section of pipeline, a hose — each looks trivial on its own, but strung together they represent the gas safety of an entire city.

During the holiday, inspections never stopped, duty shifts never paused, and response times never lagged. From stations to pipeline networks, from hotlines to stoves, a group of people guarded an invisible line — and with it, the warmth of countless kitchen fires.