Chinese county plans to fence section of the Great Wall with wire mesh after pouring cement to 'repair' the stone fortress

  • Chinese authorities plan to build a fence along a section of the Great Wall
  • Pictures emerged of locals carrying wooden poles and wire on October 3
  • Official claimed they wanted to protect the wall as well as the tourists
  • This comes weeks after the same section was coated in cement 

By Sophie Williams For Mailonline

Published: 06:14 EST, 6 October 2016 | Updated: 11:46 EST, 6 October 2016

Chinese authorities have announced plans to fence off a section of the Great Wall with wire mesh amid safety fears.

Locals were seen climbing onto the Xiaohekou Great Wall in Suizhong County, China's Liaoning province, with wire mesh and wooden poles on Monday.

A local official told thepaper.cn that fencing off the UNESCO World Heritage site was to protect the safety of tourists.

Restoration: Locals were pictured carrying wooden posts onto the section of the Great Wall

Restoration: Locals were pictured carrying wooden posts onto the section of the Great Wall

No entry: Metal wire which will be used to create the fence around the site was also spotted

No entry: Metal wire which will be used to create the fence around the site was also spotted

Protecting the wall: Holes had already been added for the arrival of the posts 

Protecting the wall: Holes had already been added for the arrival of the posts 

Pictures from October 3 show locals hiking up the section of the stone fortress armed with wooden poles and wire mesh.

According to thepaper.cn, the first step of the restoration project is to install the posts before adding the wire mesh.   

Liu Chunhua, the deputy director of Suizhong County Cultural Relics, told a reporter from thepaper.cn that the wire mesh was to protect the safety of tourists and to prevent them from climbing on the wall.

This comes just weeks after Suizhong County's Cultural Relics bureau cemented over the section of the wall, constructed in 1381 AD during China's Ming Dynasty.

Poor repair work: This comes just weeks after the same section was cemented over

Poor repair work: This comes just weeks after the same section was cemented over

Angry: Many people online were outraged at pictures of the wall coated in cement

Angry: Many people online were outraged at pictures of the wall coated in cement

Images of the Xiaohekou Great Wall appeared online on September 21 and have prompted outrage among China's social media.

At the time the bureau said it approved the concrete in order to repair and protect the historic fortifications.

On September 27, an investigation team from China's National Heritage Board instructed the bureau to take responsibility for the unsatisfactory renovation. 

Located in Suizhong County, the section of the world wonder is known as a beautiful and wild section.

It has 31 watchtowers and 14 beacon towers.

According to Global Times, the Xiaohekou section was mainly constructed from stones with plum blossom and orchid patterns carved into them.

MORE DAMAGE: ICONIC GREAT WALL GATE COLLAPSES

Collapsed: The 'Moon Gate' on the Guangwu section of the Great Wall has fallen apart

Collapsed: The 'Moon Gate' on the Guangwu section of the Great Wall has fallen apart

Xiaohekou is not the only section of the Great Wall that has seen damage recently.

The iconic 'Moon Gate' on the Guangwu section of the Great Wall in north-west China's Shanxi province collapsed on the evening of October 3, according to People's Daily Online. 

Photos posted online show the before and after.  

Gone: The 'Moon Gate' section of the wall before it collapsed on the evening of October 3

Gone: The 'Moon Gate' section of the wall before it collapsed on the evening of October 3

Local authorities are yet to release a statement about the collapse. 

Most of the Guangwu section which dates back to 1374 has never undergone any restoration.

The 20,000-metre-long section (12.4 miles) was constructed during the reign of Zhu Yuanzhang, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, according to the local government of Shanyin County.

At the moment, around 10,000 metres (six miles) of the wall have been restored. 

It is one of the most well-preserved Great Wall sections in China. 

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