Da Nang's two-level government "tested" by historic floods Part 3: Bold decision to save the whole village from landslide disaster

During the recent historic floods, amidst the raging waters and isolated villages, orders were given with responsibility and courage by the leaders of the local authorities. From the urgent evacuation of people in the middle of the night in the A Vuong highlands to the "order to break the roof" to save people in the midst of the Xuan Diem flood, those timely decisions saved hundreds of lives, affirming the strength of the local authorities when they are given autonomy and dare to act for the people.

Save the whole village from the emergency evacuation order at night

Just a few days after the terrible flash flood, when returning to Ateep village (A Vuong commune, west of Da Nang city), many people were still in shock. The entire old residential area located at the foot of the slope was buried by rocks and soil. If it had been delayed by one day, this place would have become the "second Nu village" - a tragedy that caused dozens of casualties in Lao Cai a year ago.

Ateép village has 71 households with 320 people, distributed over three residential areas. In 2022, the local government leveled new land to resettle high-risk households. However, by the end of October this year, more than 10 households had not yet been relocated. On October 27, when monitoring the rainfall and noticing many cracks appearing on the terrain, the commune leaders urgently held a meeting with the Civil Defense Command to inspect and assess the risk of landslides.

The decision to urgently evacuate people saved Ateep (A Vuong commune) from a "second Nu Village" disaster.

Chairman of the People's Committee of A Vuong Commune Briu Quan recounted: when we went to inspect the field, we saw that the mountainside had seepage and mudflow; if we did not move immediately, there was a great risk of landslides and burying the village. After discussion, the Commune Civil Defense Command agreed to deploy an emergency evacuation plan, without waiting for instructions from higher levels. That same evening, commune officials and militia forces were present in the village, mobilizing and supporting people to clean up their belongings and move to a new area or to relatives' houses at a higher location. After less than 24 hours, on the night of October 28, a prolonged heavy rain caused the entire area to collapse.

“The recent flood caused landslides and land slides from afar, burying the entire residential area, damaging people’s houses and property. This “earth-shattering” landslide hit the small village just like the one in Nu village ( Lao Cai ) before. Luckily, we were able to evacuate the people in time,” Mr. Quan was still shocked when recalling that time.

The village was devastated after floods and landslides.

In the following days, the road to Ateép was completely cut off. It took nearly a week for the commune working group to reach the scene, bringing rice, instant noodles, dried fish, blankets and warm clothes to the people. The commune leader affirmed: "Early identification of risks and proactive evacuation of people before landslides occurred helped ensure absolute safety. Despite the great damage to property, all villagers were safe." From that bold and timely decision, Ateép village was mentioned as a typical example of the capacity of local authorities to manage and respond flexibly when natural disasters exceeded forecasts.

"Breaking the roof" to save people in the flood of Xuan Diem

These days, the staff of Dien Ban Bac ward (Da Nang city) has not yet recovered after long nights of running away from the flood. When the floodwaters on the Thu Bon river continuously rose, submerging many houses and fields. Recalling his historic decision, Party Secretary and Chairman of the People's Council of Dien Ban Bac ward Nguyen Manh Hung said that the floodwaters began to rise, surpassing the historical flood peak on October 28. The flooding situation was serious: 10/20 residential groups were completely isolated, 8/20 groups were partially flooded, of which Xuan Diem residential group with 200 households was completely isolated, many families needed urgent relief. In the middle of a night of heavy rain, the Party Secretary, Chairman of the People's Council of the ward and the Civil Defense Command of the ward held an urgent meeting and passed an urgent decision: "breaking the roof" of the house (dismantling the roof) at night, ready to approach to evacuate people to a safe place.

Providing food to homes deeply submerged in floodwaters.

Following urgent orders, on the night of October 29 and early morning of October 30, Da Nang City's armed forces coordinated with Dien Ban Bac ward officials to urgently move to Xuan Diem neighborhood, which was deeply flooded and isolated due to rising floodwaters, to carry out rescue work.

The rain continued to fall, the floodwaters continued to rise, and the currents were so strong that it was difficult to reach each household. However, the rescue teams still tried to stay and persistently carry out their tasks throughout the night because the people were worried and confused. By 4 a.m. on October 30, the rescue teams had reached many isolated residential areas. The elderly, women, and children were given priority to move out of the danger zone.

In areas where the floodwaters reached the roofs, the units proceeded to "break the roofs", then coordinated with the local militia to assist people in evacuating their belongings and setting up temporary shelters. The ST-750 canoe and two specialized vehicles were mobilized to take turns transporting people, goods and necessities; dry food, drinking water, and life jackets were urgently delivered to each household to hold out while waiting for the water to recede. With the motto of "leaving no one behind", the local government and the city's armed forces made every effort every hour and every minute to reach the entire isolated area; determined to ensure absolute safety for the people, and to prevent human casualties.

“It was a difficult but urgent decision, because only then could we reach the people and evacuate them to safety. At that time, the flood water had risen too quickly,” said Nguyen Manh Hung, Secretary of the Ward Party Committee.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/chinh-quyen-2-cap-da-nang-thu-thach-qua-dot-mua-lu-lich-su-bai-3-quyet-dinh-tao-bao-cuu-ca-thon-thoat-khoi-tham-hoa-sat-lo-dat-10396162.html