Qinghai-Tibet Railway Line Drills Through "Ice Mountain"

The construction squad at the Qinghai-Tibet railway line has got something extra to celebrate apart from the coming New Year's Day.
It has just succeeded in drilling through Mount Fenghuo that is better known as the ice mountain. It gets its nickname in that the mount is formed with half ice and half soil.
To maintain the stability of the ice mountain, drafts of freezing cold air have to be blown into the tunnel to keep the ice and permanent-frost soil in place.
Other measures have also been taken to facilitate the drilling. These include reinforced supports that are forced into position before the drilling ever starts.
The construction of the 1,110-kilometer Qinghai-Tibet railway line faces the challenge of meandering through a belt of 550 kilometers of permanent-frost soil and ice and snow.
The construction of the railway line got underway on June 29 this year and is expected to complete in six years' time.

Date:December 31,2001
From:Xinhuanet