From a little trickle to a mighty gush

BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhuanet) — Daqing was nothing but a vast, wild prairie in 1959.

Thousands of workers from all over the country moved to the area in Northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province only to find no roads, no houses, not enough lorries, incomplete drilling equipment, and a shortage of daily necessities, China Daily reported Thursday.

It was a harsh time for China then and natural disasters had added to its economic woes.

The workers, however, knew that they had no choice but struggle against the odds: They were carrying the whole country’s hope of finding oil in Songliao Basin, a promising hydrocarbon bearing basin.

Xinhuanet