67 Solar Streetlights Installed in Guanpo Community, Wuyangba Subdistrict, Enshi, Hubei Province
On the evening of April 19th, as night fell, solar streetlights illuminated the alleyway along Wufengshan Road in Guanpo Community, Wuyangba Subdistrict, Enshi City, Hubei Province. The warm light bathed the mountain alley, lighting up the rugged path and guiding residents home.
In Guanpo Community, due to limited lighting coverage, two remote residential areas and 13 relocated units were left unattended, resulting in either missing or sparse streetlights. For many years, this caused inconvenience and safety hazards for residents traveling at night. In May 2025, the Enshi Prefecture Ecological Environment Monitoring Center, a unit stationed in the community, partnered with the community to implement the "Lighting Up the Way Home" project. 67 solar streetlights were installed in the old alleyways and courtyards, making countless long, dark nights a thing of the past.
Understanding the Urgent Needs and anxieties, and Taking Their Concerns to Heart
Wufengshan Road Lane 1 is a residential alley built along the mountainside, home to over 20 households and nearly 100 residents. Years ago, longtime resident Yang Dahua spearheaded a project where residents pooled their money and labor to pave the bumpy dirt road with cement. However, the road's completion brought new problems-the lack of streetlights.
"Before, when we got home at night, we relied entirely on the faint light from the city below. Every household had to carry a flashlight," Yang Dahua lamented. "Many children in the alley were still in school. They left before dawn and returned in the dark. Without streetlights, safety was always our biggest worry."
This problem wasn't limited to the mountain alley. After several units relocated, their abandoned dormitory areas also suffered from a lack of lighting and numerous safety hazards. In the PICC Property & Casualty Insurance Company dormitory, elderly resident He Chenghui, who has lived there for many years, is accustomed to taking a walk every evening. As he gets older, he becomes increasingly cautious: "Now that I'm older, I can't afford to fall."
The voices of the people are the starting point for community work. To address this urgent need, the community's "two committees" (village party committee and village committee) and the resident work team, together with the supporting unit, the State Ecological Environment Monitoring Center, formed a special working group. They conducted on-site inspections at night in alleys and residential areas, visited households to listen to their concerns, marked lighting blind spots one by one, and recorded the people's demands. Thus, a "Lighting the Way Home" public welfare campaign was launched.
"Where is the most suitable place to install streetlights? Are they bright enough? What if they break?" To collect public opinion and answer questions, the community and the Ecological Environment Monitoring Center work team moved their meetings to residents' courtyards and apartment buildings, where cadres and the masses spoke freely face-to-face, discussed solutions, and finalized details. One evening in April 2025, the courtyard of Yang Dahua's house in Wufengshan Lane 1 was filled with neighbors, all chatting enthusiastically. Yang Dahua spoke first: "The sharp turn at the alley entrance is a blind spot; we must install a light there for the safety of vehicles, pedestrians, and passengers." Neighbor Song Xuebo chimed in: "The slope in the middle of the alley is steep, and there are many elderly people and children there; we need to install one there too." Some residents also expressed concern: "Will the solar lights still work on cloudy or rainy days?"
Faced with these questions, community and monitoring center officials patiently answered, explaining the performance of the lights, their lifespan, and the long-term maintenance mechanism: "Rest assured, we have selected high-efficiency LED solar streetlights. They can provide stable lighting even during continuous cloudy or rainy weather, and we will conduct regular inspections and maintenance to ensure the streetlights function properly for a long time."
After listening attentively and taking detailed notes, the community and the ecological environment monitoring center, combining public opinion and on-site surveys, finalized a plan: to install 28 solar streetlights in the two alleys and to add 30 lights to 13 previously neglected residential areas, achieving full coverage of the area's lighting blind spots.