The days of shock after the flood
Less than a week has passed since the historic flood, but many households in the vegetable and flower growing areas along the Da Nhim River in Ka Do Commune, Lam Dong Province, are still in shock. In just a few unusual hours in the early morning of November 20, the torrential water swept away all greenhouses, vegetables and flowers. It wiped out the fruits of labor of hundreds of families in the land known as the "vegetable and flower capital" of the province.
Mr. Le Van Thang, resident of Tan Lap village, Ka Do commune, stood still, his hands trembling as he picked up the pieces of net left after the flood. Photo: TL.
The landscape after the flood was still a mess of mud, the iron frames of greenhouses were tilted, the once green fields were now just a jagged space of mud, bricks, torn nets and rotten vegetables. The air was still, only the sound of the wind whistling across the riverbank was a reminder of the sudden devastation of the natural disaster.
Amidst the devastation, Mr. Le Van Thang, a resident of Tan Lap village, Ka Do commune, stood still, his hands trembling as he picked up the remaining pieces of net. His family's 3.5-acre vegetable garden, which he had tended for months, now contained only mud and rubble. "Two hundred million dong invested for a whole year was now swept away by the water, and there was nothing left to pick up vegetables... All the effort and hope for the Tet crop disappeared in just a few hours," Mr. Thang choked up.
Over the past few days, he and his wife and children have been cleaning up the mud and checking the remaining glass frame of the house, but the pain and shock still weigh heavily. Neighbors have come to visit and help him clean up the rubble, but the atmosphere is still heavy, disappointment is evident on every face.
Hundreds of vegetable beds ready for harvest were submerged in mud. Photo: TL.
From the scene of devastation in Mr. Thang's garden, walking up about 200m, the scene no less tragic. Long rows of greenhouses that once provided income for hundreds of people are now just broken iron frames, covered in red mud.
Mr. Bui Van Khe (Tan Lap village, Ka Do commune) stood still in the middle of the land that had just gone through a fierce "storm", where there used to be a lush green flower garden that his family had painstakingly cared for for months. The old farmer's eyes were red, his gaze blankly following the messy rows of land, where there was nothing left but mud and broken tree trunks. " My family lost four sao of crops. All the capital and effort of the whole year has now disappeared. I have never seen my garden so miserable", Mr. Khe said with a choked voice.
For Mr. Khe, this land is not only a livelihood, but also a source of pride, the crystallization of every morning waking up when it was still dark and every evening returning when the sun set. Now, looking back, he can only sigh, as if he had just lost not only the crop but also a year of sweat and hope. Stepping into the mud, he clearly felt each vegetable sprout being washed away, each vegetable bed being flooded, the disappointment clearly visible in the old farmer's eyes.
Greenhouse systems collapsed en masse after the flood, causing serious damage to people. Photo: TL
Hundreds of hectares of crops were washed away.
The flood in the early morning of November 20 not only wiped out lush green vegetable fields but also left serious material consequences for people in specialized farming areas. According to quick statistics up to November 25 of the People's Committee of Ka Do commune, the recent historic flood has inundated more than 500 hectares of crops of local people. Among them, many areas of greenhouses and net houses were severely damaged by the flood.
According to Mr. Nguyen Huu Chi, Chairman of Ka Do Commune People's Committee, preliminary statistics show that the flood has caused hundreds of billions of dong in damage to local crops, houses, people's property and traffic infrastructure. Fortunately, there were no human casualties.
In the immediate future, the Ka Do commune authorities have mobilized rescue forces, along with necessary tools and equipment to help people overcome the initial consequences, clear mud and soil, collect damaged greenhouses and check the remaining crops. However, many gardens were completely lost, making it very difficult for people to reproduce.
"Currently, we are recommending that banks have plans to extend and reschedule debt for affected households. At the same time, there should be policies for people to access loans to serve their future production needs," said Mr. Chi.
The remaining vegetables have withered, making the farmers even more heartbroken. Photo: TL.
Mr. Ha Ngoc Chien, Head of the Lam Dong Province Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, said that the local plan for 2025 is to plant 92,000 hectares of vegetables and so far has planted 90,572 hectares, with an output of about 2.6 million tons. The remaining harvest area of the locality is more than 9,000 hectares, with an estimated output of over 300,000 tons.
"In the recent flood, we initially recorded 3,000 hectares of vegetables damaged, with an estimated output of about 90,000 tons. This somewhat affects the market supply at this time, but does not affect the market before, during and after Tet because Tet vegetables are planted in late November and early December," Mr. Chien informed.
Overcoming natural disasters, replanting crops
After days of heavy rain and floods, the "vegetable capital" of Lam Dong began to welcome the first sunny day. The water level of the Da Nhim River gradually receded, revealing vegetable beds and flower gardens covered in mud, with water fern and tree branches swept away by the floodwaters everywhere. People and cooperatives quickly implemented measures to clean up, improve the land and prepare facilities to restore production, in order to ensure a stable supply of vegetables to the market.
Many vegetable areas are flooded due to prolonged flooding. Photo: TL
Mr. Vo Tien Huy, Director of Tien Huy Cooperative in Hiep Thanh Commune, said that the unit has cooperated with local people to produce many types of vegetables and tubers on an area of nearly 40 hectares. The recent floods have damaged many gardens, leading to a 30% reduction in supply to the market. Currently, the cooperative members are renovating the flooded land area to soon restore production.
“The agricultural sector of Lam Dong province is supporting people and cooperatives are actively implementing measures to help people restore production. At the same time, we are closely monitoring market developments to make appropriate recommendations, ensuring a balanced supply of vegetables and fruits to serve consumer demand in the last months of the year and the upcoming Tet holiday,” Mr. Huy shared.
In the face of the severe damage caused by recent floods, Mr. Le Trong Yen, Standing Vice Chairman of Lam Dong Provincial People's Committee, requested localities to focus on overcoming the consequences of natural disasters. The focus is on repairing houses, cleaning the environment and restoring production, ensuring that people can soon stabilize their lives.
“Areas that have suffered heavy damage to crops and agricultural cultivation need to be supported quickly to help people restore production and supply products to the market, especially for the upcoming important crop seasons,” Mr. Yen directed.
Currently, the water level of Da Nhim River is gradually receding, people put aside their losses to clean up and prepare the land for re-seeding. Photo: TL.
The province is urgently allocating 500 billion VND. for localities, as a basis for mobilizing necessary forces, materials and tools to clean up mud, restore infrastructure and support people to reproduce and stabilize their lives.
Mr. Yen also emphasized that, with the forecast of storm No. 15 about to affect the South Central provinces, localities need to proactively deploy storm and flood prevention, and coordinate smoothly between forces to minimize human and property damage. This synchronous and timely intervention is an important support for people to gradually overcome the consequences of natural disasters, quickly stabilize production and life.
According to the announcement of the operating unit (Da Nhim Hydropower Joint Stock Company) from the afternoon of November 19, the company adjusted the water discharge through the spillway: the discharge increased from about 300 m³/s to 400 m³/s at 5:00 p.m., then continued to increase according to the rain. By midnight of November 20, when the rain was still continuing and the reservoir was close to the maximum safety level, the spillway discharge was pushed to a record high, fluctuating between 2,100 and 2,580 m³/s, according to the company's announcement sent to authorities and people in the downstream area.
Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/loi-khan-cau-tu-vung-lu-thu-phu-rau-lam-dong-hoang-tan-d786665.html
Comment (0)