Floodwaters overflow the Cau River dike, sea of water surrounds villagers in the suburbs of Hanoi

More than 14,000 people in 15 villages in Trung Gia commune, Hanoi city were surrounded by water. Photo: Song Bui.

Due to the influence of storm No. 11 (Matmo), prolonged heavy rain caused the water level of Cau River and Ca Lo River to rise rapidly, causing serious flooding in many riverside residential areas in Da Phuc and Trung Gia communes (Hanoi).

As of the afternoon of October 9, flood water levels here were still high, exceeding alert level 3, threatening the safety of dikes and people's lives.

Roads turned into rivers, villages submerged in "sea of water"

According to the People's Committee of Trung Gia commune, at 2:50 p.m. on October 9, the Cau River water level at Luong Phuc station was measured at 9.99 m, 1.99 m higher than alarm level 3. The rapid rise in water caused many roads in the commune to be cut off and traffic to be paralyzed.

“The section of National Highway 3 from the Yamaha Company area is flooded about 200 meters, 1.5 meters deep; the section of Xuan Son Cultural House is flooded 500 meters, 1.2 meters deep; the Minh Tri - Bac Son route to Do Tan, the Trien bridge section is flooded about 500 meters, up to 1.5 meters deep,” said the leader of Trung Gia commune.

Preliminary statistics show that 3,799 households with more than 14,000 people in 15 villages in the commune are isolated by floodwaters. Civil defense forces have been urgently mobilized, organizing rescue teams to evacuate people from deep flooded areas, and at the same time delivering food, drinking water and necessities to isolated residential areas.

A resident of An Lac village (Trung Gia commune) said: "Last night, the Cau River rose very quickly, in just a few hours it flooded the yard, the whole family had to move their belongings to higher ground. This morning, the road outside was flooded, we could only wait for the force to come and support us."

According to the Trung Gia Commune Civil Defense Command, by 12 o'clock the same day, the Cau River water level at Luong Phuc station had exceeded the III alarm level by nearly 2m; the Cong River overflowed the Do Tan dike (level IV dike) by about 20cm. Some sections of Go Sanh and Vong Am dikes were at risk of overflowing, and local authorities had set up guard posts and emergency dike protection.

At Da Phuc commune, at noon on October 9, Cau River water overflowed the dike, passing through Coc Luong and Ngo Dao villages, directly threatening the safety of the dike. Although officials and residents have tried to reinforce it, many locations of the dike and seepage banks still have water leaking and overflowing onto the roads.

“The risk of losing the safety of the dike is at an extremely dangerous level. We have mobilized all forces, means, and materials such as sandbags, bamboo poles, waterproof tarpaulins, etc. to reinforce the embankment, clear the flow, and ensure drainage,” said the leader of Da Phuc commune.

Inter-commune and inter-village roads were submerged in water, with some places in Trung Gia commune recording water depths of 1.5m. Photo: Song Bui.

Straining to protect the dike and rescue people

On the dike lines on the right of Cau, hundreds of cadres, civil servants, members of the Youth Union and local people are on duty 24/7, ready to handle incidents. The militia and self-defense forces, commune police and disaster prevention shock teams are mobilized to the maximum to protect key positions.

Many households in the flooded area had to evacuate. The family of Mr. Duong Van Dung (31 years old, Xuan Son village, Trung Gia commune) said: “Last night the water rose very quickly, in just a few hours the water rose more than 1 meter, over the heads of adults. My house lost electricity and clean water, so we had to call rescuers to take us by motorboat out of the flooded area to stay at a relative's house. Since I was a child, I have never seen such a big flood.”

Not only houses, dozens of hectares of crops and aquaculture ponds along the river were also washed away, causing heavy losses to the people. Local authorities are counting and assessing the damage to come up with timely support plans.

Many people in two suburban communes of Hanoi have been evacuated from dangerous areas at risk of landslides... Photo: Song Bui.

Party Secretary of the commune Le Huu Manh said that the locality has directed forces to evacuate more than 2,500 people out of a total of nearly 7,000 people who need to be evacuated. Priority is given to the elderly, children, and pregnant women. Forces are still on standby to support the remaining households if the Cau River water level continues to rise.

On October 9, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Nguyen Van Phong and Vice Chairman of the City People's Committee Nguyen Manh Quyen directly went to Da Phuc and Trung Gia communes to inspect the work of preventing and responding to the flood on the Cau River.

Standing Deputy Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Nguyen Van Phong and Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Nguyen Manh Quyen inspect and direct dike protection in Trung Gia commune. Photo: Van Ky

Regarding Trung Gia commune, Mr. Nguyen Van Phong requested local authorities to urgently evacuate people from deep flooded and high-risk areas, paying special attention to ensuring the lives, food and temporary accommodation for evacuated households.

Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Nguyen Manh Quyen said that the city has directed relevant departments and branches to provide emergency support with supplies and vehicles, and work with Soc Son district to deploy forces and pumping equipment, mobilize specialized vehicles and rescue boats. "The number one priority at this time is to ensure the safety of people's lives and property," Mr. Quyen affirmed.

According to Dan Viet

Source: https://baohaiphong.vn/nuoc-lu-tran-de-song-cau-bien-nuoc-bao-vay-dan-lang-ngoai-thanh-ha-noi-523086.html