Plan to repair damage to National Highway 40B

Stacking stone baskets to prevent erosion at the culvert and temporary road at km82+500 of National Highway 40B. Photo: CONG TU

Severe damage

By the afternoon of November 3, the construction of temporary culverts and earth filling to build the road was almost completed, and vehicles were able to pass the traffic jam at km82+500, National Highway 40B. The unit managing National Highway 40B, from the beginning of the route (near Tam Thanh beach) to km85+850 (Tra Tan commune), Quang Nam Road Management and Construction Joint Stock Company, continued to arrange stone cages to prevent erosion.

A representative of the management unit said that heavy rains in the southwestern mountainous region caused landslides of more than 50,000 cubic meters of rock and soil, eroding the bridge at km82+500, blocking the road.

Quang Nam Road Management and Construction Joint Stock Company said that with a length of more than 85km of National Highway 40B assigned to the Department of Construction for management, the unit has handed over more than 20km (route km34+394 - km54+540) through Thanh Binh, Lanh Ngoc, and Tra My communes to the Quang Nam Traffic Construction Investment Project Management Board to implement the Central Region Connection Project, Quang Nam province (old).

Except for the coastal plain area, the section of the route passing through Tra My and Tra Tan communes suffered heavy landslides, causing 35 locations to be flooded with mud mixed with rocks and trees. The estimated landslide volume was nearly 200,000m3.

2(1).jpg — A very serious landslide on Highway 40B. Photo: CONG TU

The section of km85+850 that ends at Da Nang city at km141+080 (bordering Quang Ngai province) is managed by Quang Nam Traffic Construction Joint Stock Company. The recent heavy rains have severely damaged the main artery in Nam Tra My and Tra Linh communes.

Mr. Nguyen Truong Thanh Vu, Director of National Highway 40B Enterprise (Quang Nam Transport Construction Joint Stock Company) said that this section of the route had landslides on the slope, with rocks and soil covering the road surface and longitudinal ditches at 107 locations. The estimated volume of landslides was up to 450,000m3.

More worryingly, the prolonged heavy rain has created strong, swift currents that have caused erosion and cracks across the surface of National Highway 40B. For example, at km68+030 - km68+100 (Tra Tan commune), the cracks in the road surface are getting wider and wider, threatening to lead to a road break.

The management unit must place warning signs and barriers to prevent vehicles from moving on the right side of the road that is collapsing. To the west, the road surface of km90+520 has horizontal cracks, combined with the landslide slope, which is at high risk of causing a road break.

Need time to fix

Directly monitoring the response and recovery work for the flood on National Highway 40B, Deputy Director of the Department of Construction Tran Ngoc Thanh directed, urged, and guided the management units to urgently clear the landslides, temporarily handle the washed away culverts, and cracked roads to clear a section of traffic as quickly as possible.

Cracks and subsidence on the road surface at km68+030 - km68+100 (Tra Tan commune). Photo: DEPARTMENT OF CONSTRUCTION

This not only helps with immediate recovery, but also solves the problem of transporting goods and necessities to the highlands to serve people who are isolated from the midlands and deltas, creating conditions for functional forces to conduct rescue work in isolated areas.

However, the harsh weather conditions, with heavy rains lasting from one period to another, have greatly affected the progress of the repair. Many locations, just after clearing one lane of traffic, were immediately blocked again due to recurring landslides.

"Unit pay attention, clearing the road is very necessary, but the priority is to ensure the health and safety of the workers first and foremost," Mr. Tran Ngoc Thanh emphasized. Seeing the hardship and danger of the workers participating in the repair, Mr. Vo Quang Trinh (Song Tranh village, Tra Tan commune), a local resident, was restless and always reminded everyone to be careful to prevent landslides from recurring during construction.

After the repair period, vehicles on National Highway 40B can now go up to km136+000 (Tra Linh commune). Mr. Nguyen Truong Thanh Vu said that the road management unit is continuing to clear the road until the afternoon of November 6 to open a stretch of road to the border of Quang Ngai province.

According to a representative of Quang Nam Road Management and Construction Joint Stock Company, after the first phase of traffic opening, the unit will carry out the cleaning of landslides and repair the remaining small damaged spots to open the entire road to traffic in about half a month.

The Department of Construction has sent specialized staff to continue to inspect National Highway 40B and together with the design consultant, will review and discuss plans to rebuild the areas at risk of road breakage. After that, the industry officially requested construction approval to carry out the next steps, connecting smoothly from the coast to the famous Ngoc Linh ginseng region.

National Highway 40B is more than 209km long, starting point in Quang Phu ward (Da Nang city), ending point adjacent to Ho Chi Minh road in Quang Ngai province.

Located in Da Nang, National Highway 40B is more than 141km long, passing through the wards of Quang Phu, Huong Tra and Tam Ky; the communes of Chien Dan, Phu Ninh, Tien Phuoc, Thanh Binh, Lanh Ngoc, Tra My, Tra Tan, Nam Tra My and Tra Linh.

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