Together to overcome the flood

The numbers speak for themselves.

The impact of storm No. 10 and prolonged heavy rains have caused particularly serious damage across the province. According to a quick report from the Provincial Civil Defense Command Office, as of 6 p.m. on September 30, 4 people were missing due to landslides in Lung Cu commune; more than 1,000 houses were flooded, damaged, and had to be urgently evacuated. Of these, 700 houses were damaged; 320 houses had to be urgently evacuated; 19 houses were at risk of being affected by landslides.

The floods are also inundating thousands of houses, concentrated in the following wards and communes: Tan Long, Nong Tien, Thai Binh , Binh Ca, Yen Son, Thai Hoa, Na Hang, Tan My, Yen Lap, Chiem Hoa, Hoa An, Kim Binh, Luc Hanh, Xuan Van, My Lam, Kien Dai, Nhu Khe, and Bac Me.

Officers and soldiers of Regiment 247, under the Provincial Military Command, actively helped owners of floating houses in Minh Xuan ward move and secure their floating houses to ensure safety. Photo: Ly Thinh

The storm and flood damaged many schools, medical facilities, and irrigation works; inundated over 180 hectares of rice, over 100 hectares of corn, and many areas of vegetables and perennial trees. Traffic was paralyzed in many places, some roads were seriously eroded, and there were local congestions. Electric poles were broken, and the roofs of two commune People's Committee offices and many village cultural houses were blown off.

In Chiem Hoa commune alone, 1,791 households/31 villages were isolated; 571 households/26 villages had to move to avoid the flood; production damage was over 200 hectares of various crops, 11.05 hectares of aquaculture and 6 rafts; total damage was over 3.6 billion VND. Na Hang had 300 households deeply flooded, 12 households had to be relocated, 3 villages were isolated. Na Hang commune had 300 households deeply flooded; 12 households affected by landslides were relocated, the commune had 3 villages isolated. Basically, the situation was stable, the commune directed the villages to proactively provide materials, arrange to move the relocated households to dangerous areas.

In particular, in Ma Lau A village (Lung Cu commune), a serious landslide buried 4 people, dozens of households in high-risk areas. On the same day, authorities urgently brought 60 households to safety.

The damage figures not only reflect the fierce devastation of natural disasters, but also sound the alarm about the increasingly fierce level of storms and floods in the northern mountainous region.

Timely attention and loving arms

Faced with the complicated flood situation, especially when the water level of Lo River rose abnormally high, on the night of September 30, Comrade Hau A Lenh, member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee directly inspected Minh Xuan and Nong Tien wards, directing local leaders to be on duty 24/7, absolutely not to be subjective. The Provincial Party Secretary emphasized: it is necessary to mobilize maximum forces and means to support people in moving their assets, ensuring safety of life, and propagandizing people not to gather along the river when the water level rises.

On the morning of October 1, at the meeting of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, the Provincial Party Secretary emphasized the requirement to absolutely not lose contact with people in isolated areas; at the same time, urgently provide food and essential necessities, proactively propagate, mobilize and organize the evacuation of people from areas at high risk of landslides and flash floods to safe places.

In addition, it is necessary to set up addresses to receive support from organizations and individuals; organize reasonable, public, transparent distribution, to the right subjects and for the right purposes. The Provincial Party Secretary proposed to temporarily suspend, postpone, and postpone all meetings to focus on flood prevention and control work.

Militia forces of My Lam ward help people of Cay Quyt 2 residential group harvest rice to escape the flood. Photo: Kim Ngoc

Previously, on September 29, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee issued a document directing the focus on implementing response work for storm No. 10 and floods, landslides, flash floods, and landslides. On the morning of October 1, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Phan Huy Ngoc inspected the flood situation in Chiem Hoa commune. He requested the locality to continue closely monitoring the flood situation, ensuring the safety of people's lives is the top priority.

Right at the scene of Ma Lau A village (Lung Cu commune), Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial Fatherland Front Committee Ha Trung Kien was present to direct the rescue work. Lieutenant Colonel Kieu Hai Dang, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Defense Command of Area 1 - Yen Minh, said that the unit had mobilized 46 officers and soldiers along with militia, police, and border guards to coordinate in searching for the missing people. The recovery work was carried out vigorously in difficult terrain conditions, with inaccessible vehicles, many sections had to be traversed through the forest and dug manually.

The night of October 1 was a sleepless night for many communes, especially in Ha Giang 1 and Ha Giang 2 wards, when the Lo River water level exceeded its historic peak. In the vast sea of water, rescue forces and neighbors promptly assisted in evacuating and protecting property. The story of Ms. Du Thi Thuyet, group 18 Minh Khai, Ha Giang 2 ward is a vivid proof: when 4 modern medicine warehouses were at risk of being submerged, Ms. Luu Thi Lam - Head of the residential group - joined hands. After 3 hours, all the medicines were safely evacuated.

Police, army and border guards were on duty all night, using canoes, boats and rafts to rescue people. Many soldiers were exhausted after being in the rain for many hours but still determined to "call - be there immediately". Volunteer groups in the locality and on social networks called for donations of rice, instant noodles, drinking water, blankets, flashlights, and went directly to the flooded areas to give to people.

In Na Hang, the volunteer club and the Commune People's Committee organized to cook rice and send it to the flooded villages. The spirit of sharing and solidarity warmed the houses during the rainy and flood night.

The Provincial Red Cross has proactively worked with volunteer organizations and suppliers of essential goods; established working groups to be ready to respond to emergency situations related to storms and floods. The Association also coordinated with agencies, units and localities to strengthen the dissemination of information on forecasts and warnings about natural disasters to the people in many forms.

Flood control experience - lessons for the present and the future

In the past 3 consecutive years, localities in Tuyen Quang province have suffered many natural disasters causing heavy losses in human lives and property. Despite proactive efforts to prevent them, the consequences are still very severe, partly because natural disasters are increasingly severe, and partly because a part of the population is still subjective and negligent.

Many households suffered heavy losses in floods because they “forgot” to be warned, did not evacuate in time, or were subjective because they thought their area was higher than the flood level. In this year’s flood, the reality was more severe, the water level rose higher, many places suffered damage due to landslides. At landslide sites, people sometimes did not foresee risks such as cracks, and did not take timely precautions.

One of the “key” points in flood management is the regulation of hydroelectric reservoirs. In the context of heavy rain, the water flow to the reservoir increases rapidly, the bottom discharge gate is opened to reduce pressure, limit the risk of dam breakage downstream and secondary floods. However, the discharge also needs to be closely coordinated with information to people in the downstream area so that people can move their assets and evacuate in time. This requires an early warning system, continuous and synchronized information at all levels from the province to the commune.

Proactively and flexibly implement the "4 on-site" motto (on-site forces - on-site means - on-site command - on-site logistics) to respond quickly, without waiting for aid from afar, especially in implementing 2-level local government. Local forces are always on duty, ready to perform tasks. Information must be continuously broadcast through loudspeakers, social networks, and warning systems in villages so that people know and proactively move.

Furthermore, the province needs to have solutions to build solid infrastructure, adapt to natural disasters, build residential areas, and resettle people in landslide-prone areas. Improve slopes to prevent landslides, stone embankments, good drainage systems in urban areas, protect river banks, upgrade canals, dikes, and plan residential areas to avoid landslide-prone and slippery areas.

Strengthen upstream forestation, maintain vegetation cover to reduce surface runoff, limit soil erosion, landslides, and flash floods. In particular, people must proactively monitor the situation, listen to warnings, and comply with the request of local authorities to evacuate to minimize damage.

Mr. Nguyen Huu Thap, Chairman of the Provincial Business Association shared: Faced with the complicated weather situation, the Tuyen Quang Provincial Business Association has proactively informed and updated the situation so that businesses can prepare timely response measures.

Learning from the 2024 flood, throughout September 30, the Association continued to convey the direction of the province and functional agencies, updated the flood situation in the upstream and the flood discharge from Tuyen Quang Hydropower Plant through the Association's Zalo groups, helping businesses in the areas of Ham Yen, Chiem Hoa, Yen Son, Son Duong and Tuyen Quang grasp the situation. Businesses proactively moved assets and equipment, ensuring safety for workers.

The association also called on member businesses to continue promoting the spirit of community support, with technical means ready to participate in rescue when there are floods. Businesses will coordinate with the authorities to transport people and assets to safety.

The education sector issued an urgent document, requesting schools to let students stay home when there is a risk, considering ensuring the lives of students and teachers as the top priority. The electricity sector proactively took measures to fix the problem and restore power as soon as possible.

At an online meeting with communes and wards to assess the damage and deploy measures to respond to the circulation of storm No. 10 (Bualoi), Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Manh Tuan requested the entire political system from the province to the grassroots level to urgently and resolutely respond, not to let people go hungry, cold, or lack food; when the water recedes, the environment must be urgently repaired, life and production restored.

Currently, Tuyen Quang is still struggling to cope with the storm. The fields are still covered in mud, the roofs are crooked, the roads have not been reopened, and there are still missing victims that have not been found... requiring the tireless efforts of the entire political system and each citizen.

But above all, Tuyen Quang people still feel warm because in the storm, human love never fades. The close attention of the Party Committee and government; the dedication of the rescue force regardless of danger; the sincere sharing of the people and volunteer organizations have become the "lifebuoys" helping people overcome danger.

Bien Luan

Source: https://baotuyenquang.com.vn/xa-hoi/202510/dong-long-vuot-lu-1277305/