Don't wait until the wind blows to fix the roof - Part 1: Highlands are also... flooded

Editor's note : The ancients once concluded that "Water, fire, thieves, and bandits" are the four major disasters to human life, of which floods are the top. In recent years, the weather has become increasingly complex and irregular, causing damage to people and property, greatly affecting people's lives and production. Bac Ninh has based on the direction of the Central Government and the actual situation, proactively and synchronously deployed measures to minimize damage with the motto "don't wait until the wind blows to worry about the roof".

Lesson 1: The highlands are also… flooded

If floods used to occur in low-lying areas, they now appear in highland areas with high frequency and great destructive power. This unusual change causes people in mountainous and highland areas to face many risks, suffer heavy property damage, and threaten the safety of people's lives.

Heavy rains caused underground flooding in An Ba, Son Dong commune.

Messy after the flood

Returning to Tuan Dao commune after the flood last August, the water on the river branches and streams is gradually receding but the scene is still chaotic. This is one of the localities that suffered great damage due to natural disasters with 147 households flooded, hundreds of landslides affecting traffic infrastructure and social security. The small road leading to Tuan An village was swept away by the raging flood, leaving only a small strip of land along the edge of the acacia plantation. All the efforts of the people to prepare the ground and materials for pouring concrete were now dissolved in the flood. Traveling on the roads in other villages, it is easy to see houses precariously balanced on the mountainside still imprinted with water; rocks weighing tons, larger than a large table, lying haphazardly in the middle of the road.

After the flood, hundreds of rocks rolled down from the mountain and lay scattered in the middle of the road in Tuan An village, Tuan Dao commune.

Following the commune officials, we visited the family of Ms. Hoang Thi Que in Tuan An village, one of the households affected by the flood. With a tired face, Ms. Que said: “For many years, my family has never been at peace. The 2008 flood swept away our house, property, and almost lost our lives. After that, with the State's support for resettlement, we moved to the foot of a high mountain to build a house, thinking we had settled down. Recently, the land on the hill has continuously eroded and flowed down close to the house walls. Whenever there is heavy rain, the whole family is in fear, having to evacuate, only daring to return after a few days.”

Landslide area behind Ms. Hoang Thi Que's house.

Mrs. Que's house is about 70 square meters wide, located precariously at the foot of the hill. Behind the house is a hill that used to be covered with green forestry trees, now a patch of red soil torn apart, revealing long, jagged cracks like unhealed wounds. Looking down from above, the landslide has run right up to the foot of the house wall, the mud is patchy, thick like glue, blocking the entire path. Mrs. Que and her husband stood watching the uprooted acacia trees, leaning along the cracks of the hill as if ready to collapse at any moment, their hearts heavy, worried about the safety of the whole family.

Local authorities warned of a dangerous area due to landslides behind Ms. Que's house.

Recalling the impact of storm No. 3 ( Yagi ) in September last year, Ms. Que and her relatives were still in shock. During the rainy night, tons of earth poured down, and everyone only had time to run for their lives. At the end of that year, the family spent more than 30 million VND with the local authorities to hire an excavator to cut the soil layer, lower the load, and build a runway to prevent landslides, but this temporary measure could not prevent the risk.

Recently, hundreds of cubic meters of soil from the high mountains slid down, crashing against the house wall. “The whole family is always in a state of anxiety, every time it rains heavily, we worry that the house will collapse, our hearts are never at peace,” she sighed. Currently, Tuan Dao commune has warned about the risk of landslides, advising the family to move to another place to ensure their safety.

Linh Phu village, Tuan Dao commune was deeply submerged in flood water.

Also suffering heavy damage in the recent flood was the family of Mr. Nguyen Quang Quy, Linh Phu village. When we arrived, the whole family was busy sweeping away the thick layer of mud after many days of flooding. His face was haggard from lack of sleep, making him look gaunt and older than his age. Squinting his eyes to look out into the space in front of his house, he said: “I have lived in this area for more than 50 years but have never witnessed a flood that rose so quickly. The water from the river rushed in at dawn when everyone was still sleeping, and in just a moment it was up to the house. The family's assets such as cars, motorbikes, washing machines, beds, wardrobes, etc. could not be moved in time and were deeply submerged in water.”

Mr. Quy's family cleans up after the flood.

A year ago, storm No. 3 also damaged Mr. Quy's family's house. This year, the couple borrowed money from everywhere to repair a little bit, but before they could finish, another natural disaster struck. "After the flood, the house's foundation sank nearly 7 cm, and the walls cracked. If we continue to repair it, will this house be safe and strong enough to withstand the fierce storm and flood?", Mr. Quy wondered.

After the flood, a long crack appeared on Mr. Quy's wall.

Not only causing great property damage, about 2 months before, in Dong Chu village, Yen Dinh commune, there was a death case due to being swept away by flood water. Mr. Tu Van Bo, whose wife was swept away by flood water, choked up and said: "The house is by the stream, every year we have to flee the flood several times. From the house to the other side is connected by a small wooden bridge built by the family, without any handrails or fences. Although we know it is very dangerous here, the people of the highlands have saved their whole lives to build a small house on the land left by their ancestors. Now, leaving their houses and fields behind, they don't know where to go and what to do to make a living? That day, the flood came early in the morning, the destructive power was so terrible that it swept everything away, taking away human lives, leaving the people in the area in shock."

The stories of Mrs. Que's family, Mr. Quy's family, Mr. Bo's family, and their worries and concerns about natural disasters that threaten their lives make everyone feel the insecurity and risks of the people in the highlands.

Three months, four times running from flood

Every rainy season, people in many highland communes are always worried about flash floods and landslides. Just a heavy rain lasting a few hours, water pouring down from above, carrying rocks, soil, trees, can completely paralyze traffic, sweep away crops, livestock, poultry, level large plots of land, and damage houses. Recent floods often occur late at night or early in the morning, when people are sleeping, becoming a concern for every household.

Floods destroyed many roads in Tuan Dao commune.

During June, July and August, many people in Yen Dinh, Tuan Dao, Dai Son, Bien Son and Bien Dong communes had to evacuate four times to avoid floods. Specifically, heavy rains accompanied by floods occurred on June 22, July 22, August 21 and most recently on August 25. Every time there was an evacuation order, local authorities advised people to prioritize ensuring their lives first, then their property (food, vehicles, electronic equipment, etc.). However, despite preparations, the floods came unexpectedly, leaving many households unable to react.

Heavy rains on August 21 caused widespread flooding in Tuan Dao commune.

In Tuan Dao commune, early in the morning of August 21, a heavy rain with rainfall of over 300 mm within 4 hours (from 3 to 7 am), far exceeding the average threshold of many years, caused serious flooding, flash floods and landslides. The commune has activated its disaster response plan; urgently notified 12/12 villages, requesting local forces to be ready for rescue. Under the pouring rain, dozens of commune and village officials spread out everywhere, knocking on each house's door to announce the order to evacuate people and property to safe locations, to prevent flooding.

The commune sent forces to find the fastest way to reach the scene of deeply flooded areas at risk of landslides to assist people in evacuating. In a very short time, dozens of excavators and trucks were mobilized along with hundreds of volunteers, including farmers, veterans, militiamen, youth, and women in the village and hamlet, enthusiastically responding to the rescue, leveling rocks and soil, moving people and property away from dangerous areas, repairing and reconnecting water supply pipes, gradually restoring the source of domestic water for the people.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Son, Chairman of Tuan Dao Commune People's Committee, the flood on August 21 was one of the biggest natural disasters in recent years. The whole commune had 63 landslides affecting households; 61 landslides on inter-commune, inter-village and intra-village roads; 6 landslides on provincial roads; 12 culverts and 8 culverts were severely eroded; the domestic water systems of many villages were damaged; from August 21 to 28, Linh Phu villagers still had not had their water supply restored... The total preliminary damage to assets of the State, people and businesses in the whole commune is estimated at about 57 billion VND - a huge number for a mountainous commune. "To restore production and stabilize life after the flood will require a lot of time and resources. We are proposing to the province for urgent financial support," said Mr. Son.

The flood on August 21 was one of the biggest natural disasters in recent years in Tuan Dao commune. The total estimated damage to State, People and businesses’ assets in the whole commune was about 57 billion VND - a huge number for a mountainous commune.

In addition to the above areas, since the beginning of July, many other communes have also suffered a lot of damage caused by natural disasters. In Bien Dong commune alone, preliminary statistics show that the total length of road affected by landslides on both positive and negative slopes in the area is about 2,100 m, with the heaviest damage being in Vach Gao village, where many ethnic minorities live, with many sections of rock and soil sliding and landslides on the main roads, causing traffic congestion.

In Bien Son commune, floods caused many schools, cultural houses, and houses to have their roofs blown off; many underground works and domestic water supplies were damaged; crops and fruit trees withered or died, affecting productivity. The total damage to works and facilities in the commune is estimated at about 3.5 billion VND.

Underground landslide in Cha village, Bien Son commune.

Remember in 2024, Bac Giang province was affected by storm Yagi, property damage was estimated at about 5,000 billion VND; 2 people died, 15 people were injured. Bac Ninh province (old) had 52 people injured; the agricultural sector alone suffered nearly 900 billion VND in damage. Immediately after the flood receded, local authorities and authorities promptly took action, implementing a series of solutions to restore production and stabilize people's lives.

(To be continued)

Economic Reporter Group

Source: https://baobacninhtv.vn/dung-de-noi-gio-moi-lo-chang-mai-bai-1-vung-cao-cung-ngap-lut-postid425620.bbg