Overcoming landslides on National Highway 14E: Still takes a long time

3(2).jpg — A huge amount of soil, rocks, and trees from the slope of Highway 14E collapsed onto the roadbed. Photo: CONG TU

National Highway 14E, with a total length of 89.7km, connects Binh Minh coastal area (Thang An commune) with Ho Chi Minh road (Kham Duc commune). Currently, the section from km15+270 to km89+700 has been handed over by the Department of Construction of Da Nang city to Project Management Board 4 (Vietnam Road Administration) to carry out the renovation and upgrading project.

7(2).jpg — Positive slope slide from the top of the hill at km84+700. Photo: CONG TU

Heavy rains lasting from October 26 to November 6 caused landslides at 21 locations along the route. The most serious landslides were at km66+700 and km84+500 - km84+700 (section passing through Phuoc Hiep commune), causing complete traffic congestion.

This situation has isolated 6 villages with 1,767 households of Phuoc Hiep commune, making it very difficult to travel, transport necessities and access essential medical services. Project Management Board 4 has mobilized the joint venture of contractors under the XD03 package to focus on human resources and machinery to clear rocks and soil, and urgently clear the route.

5(1).jpg — Landslides caused separation between Phuoc Hiep commune and the center of Phuoc Son district (old). Photo: CONG TU

However, due to the continued heavy rain, the recovery work encountered many obstacles. Many newly cleared roads were quickly buried again.

Engineer Nguyen Cong Quy, Deputy Executive Director of the XD03 package (Project Management Board 4), said that the unit is mobilizing maximum forces to clear and repair, and is expected to open one lane through the route km84+500 - km84+700 on November 10.

[ VIDEO ] - Contractor's vehicles are trying to clear the dirt and rocks that have spilled onto the road:

However, the construction work here faces many challenges due to the very weak geological slope. On one side is a high cliff, on the other side is the hydroelectric reservoir, while the landslide soil and rocks are waterlogged, making transportation to another place take a lot of time. The management unit has directed the contractor to complete a temporary route to serve motorbikes and pedestrians.

Pedestrians and motorcyclists struggle to get through the temporary road. Photo: CONG TU

According to records at the scene, a huge amount of rock and soil slid from the positive slope, across the road, over a low hill and straight into the Dak Mi hydroelectric reservoir. The landslide broke the electric pole, washed away the drainage and completely destroyed a section of the road. It is estimated that the amount of rock and soil that spilled onto the road was more than 100,000 m³.

The contractor is taking advantage of favorable weather conditions to mobilize more machinery to speed up progress. However, after a site survey, the design consultant discovered a large crack on the top of the hill. Experts warn that hastily clearing the rock and soil below could cause the support to be lost, causing a new landslide of even greater volume, further complicating the situation.

2(3).jpg — A complete fix will take a long time. Photo: CONG TU

A representative of Project Management Board 4 said that the unit is coordinating with local authorities to count the trees planted by people on the hilltop to carry out compensation work. After that, the units will proceed to remove the slope to completely handle the risk of landslides. Therefore, the official time of traffic opening through this section of the route has not yet been determined.

The immediate solution is to widen the existing temporary road, using waste rock from the construction site to reinforce the subsidence areas, allowing cars to pass. The work of widening and reinforcing this temporary road is expected to take about a week to complete.

Source: https://baodanang.vn/khac-phuc-sat-lo-quoc-lo-14e-con-mat-nhieu-thoi-gian-3309651.html