People in the "flood center" of Hue have to flee floods 3 times a week: "We are exhausted"

In low-lying areas of Hue City, when the flood water had not yet receded, the water rose again, each time higher than the previous, people struggled with flooding, lack of electricity, lack of water...

On the evening of November 3, VTC News Electronic Newspaper reporters were present in Hoa Chau ward and Quang Dien commune - areas located downstream of Bo river and are the "flood center" of the province. Hue City. The Bo River has receded a lot compared to before, but many places in these two communes and wards are still submerged. The only way to access these residential areas is by boat or canoe.

Locals said that for many days, they have not seen the road dry because the water has not had time to recede when another flood comes. the next flood is higher than the previous flood

At its peak, on the evening of November 2, heavy rain caused the Bo River to rise and peak at 1 p.m. on November 3, with the water level measured at Phu Oc station at 5.31 meters, breaking the new record set at 11 a.m. on October 29 of 5.15 meters and surpassing the peak of the "great flood" in 1999. A large area of Quang Dien district (old) was submerged in the vast sea of water.

Local people — People in the "flood center" areas of Hoa Chau and Quang Dien (Hue City) could not hide their tired faces because they had to flee floods 3 times a week.

It was only late afternoon but it felt like midnight because of the power outage. Water was everywhere, the wind was howling and the air was freezing cold. Occasionally there was a flicker of light from rechargeable lamps and candles in the residential areas.

Straining her eyes in the dim light to prepare dinner for her family, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Hue (65 years old, residing in Hoa Chau ward, Hue city) said that the floodwaters had flooded her main house, almost 1 meter deep. Before that, after experiencing 2 floods in less than 3 days, Mrs. Hue was exhausted when she had just cleaned the house when another flood came.

“ Learning from the experience of the two floods that lasted from October 27 to 29, I heard that the weather forecast was still complicated, so I only took down the necessary items for use, and kept the rest as is. I also thought that this flood would be lower than the previous two times, but I didn’t expect the water to rise so much and so quickly, I couldn’t handle it, ” Ms. Hue shared.

People soak in flood water, cook meals for their families.

According to Mrs. Hue, all week, she has not had a single night of full sleep. Her health is exhausted because her children are working far away. She has to stay up all night alone to escape the flood and take care of her three grandchildren.

During the previous two floods, she had people help her move things, but the third time the water rose so high, Ms. Hue had to do everything by herself because her neighbors also had to take care of their houses.

“ Before the flood, I had food reserves, but because the flood lasted so long, I ran out of food. Luckily, in the past few days, groups have come to support with necessities like instant noodles and water... Thanks to that, we have food and drink. If the flood lasts for so long and the power outage is like this, I don't know what to do... If there is another flood, I probably won't be able to hold on, I'm exhausted... ", Mrs. Hue sighed.

At night, there was a power outage, there were houses in the area — At night, there was a power outage. Some houses in the "flood center" of Hue City only had one rechargeable lamp to both watch the flood and cook.

When we arrived, although it was dark, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Thuy, 54 years old (residing in Dong Xuyen village, Quang Dien commune) was struggling to cope with the third flood that had flooded her house in just a few days.

Mrs. Thuy's house is about 200 meters from the Bo River. Although the foundation was built 1.6 meters higher than the road surface, on November 3, floodwater still flooded the house to a depth of 0.5 meters. The main road in front of her house was flooded nearly 2 meters. The entire Dong Xuyen village was almost completely isolated.

" On the evening of November 2, it rained heavily. When my family had just finished dinner, the water started to flood the yard again. A few hours later, the main house was flooded 0.5 meters. This was the third time in over a week that the floodwaters receded and then rose again, flooding the house. During that time, my husband and I had to take time off from work and our children had to take time off from school.

In my hometown, the economy was already difficult, but now the natural disaster has caused not only my family but also many people in the "flood center" of Hue city to fall into poverty in all aspects... ", Ms. Thuy confided.

On the night of November 3, although the Bo River water was gradually decreasing, Mrs. Thuy and her husband still took turns every 15 minutes holding flashlights to "watch for the flood". If the flood water continued to rise, they would still have time to raise their property. If the water receded, they would clean the house immediately because if the mud dried after the water receded, it would be very difficult to clean.

According to Ms. Thuy, in the previous two floods, the whole family had to get up at 5am to clear mud and clean things. As the water level recedes, cleaning will be faster and more convenient.

On the morning of November 2, when the family had just taken down the refrigerator and washing machine, they heard the flood warning and the whole family hurried to put things back up.

When the third flood had not yet risen, the village road was still 0.6 meters deep, Mrs. Thuy waded quickly to buy more food and clean water to be ready to "live with the flood".

“ The previous flood left the entire village without electricity for 4 days. After just over a day of electricity, the third flood hit. During the day it was bearable, but at night the whole family only had a flashlight. I had to hold the flashlight in one hand and cook with the other.

Every time the flood comes, I am afraid of many things: I am afraid that the water will submerge my property and cause damage without having money to buy it back, I am afraid of water cuts, power outages, and loss of mobile signal. As for the battery-storage items, I try to charge them all. The whole family has a spare charger, so I save it to charge my phone to contact the outside in unexpected situations… ”, Ms. Thuy shared.

From the afternoon of November 3, the water level of Bo River tends to decrease but in other areas — Since the afternoon of November 3, the water level of the Bo River has tended to decrease, but the "flood center" areas in Hoa Chau and Quang Dien (Hue City) have receded quite slowly and the flooding is expected to last for another 2-3 days.

About a hundred meters from Mrs. Thuy's house is Mr. Pham Huu Lan's house - a person who experienced the historic floods in 1999 and 2020. Mr. Lan said that the local authorities during the recent floods did a very good job of warning and informing people in a timely manner to minimize damage.

“ This flood water rose quickly, but receded very slowly, partly because of high tides, and partly because of heavy rain upstream, so the hydroelectric plants had to regulate flood discharge downstream… ”, Mr. Lan commented.

Hydrometeorological Station Hue City According to Kim Long station, the flood on Huong River peaked at 1:00 p.m. on November 3, at 4.47 m, 0.97 m higher than alert level 3; the flood on Bo River at Phu Oc station peaked at 1:20 p.m. the same day at 5.33 m, 0.83 m higher than alert level 3.

It is forecasted that Hue City will pass the peak of the heavy rains, floods on the rivers will reach their peak, from the afternoon of November 3, the rain will tend to decrease, the flood water will gradually recede. From the afternoon of November 5 to the end of November 6, the rain will tend to decrease, but from the night of November 6 to the end of November 8, heavy rains may increase again in Hue City due to the influence of the circulation of storm No. 13 - storm KALMAEGI.

Source: https://baolangson.vn/dan-ron-lu-o-hue-1-tuan-3-lan-chay-lut-chung-toi-kiet-suc-roi-5063822.html