Quang Tri: Quickly repair damage and landslides on the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Road

After the prolonged floods caused by the recent storm No. 12, the Ho Chi Minh Highway West branch passing through Quang Tri province was severely damaged with a series of landslides. Although the route has been reopened, it is necessary to urgently have long-term solutions to ensure the safety of people and vehicles when traveling.

A large landslide occurred on Ho Chi Minh Road through Truong Son commune, Quang Tri province. Photo: nhandan.vn

According to VNA reporters on the Ho Chi Minh Highway West branch from Km0 to Km210, passing through Quang Tri province, after the recent floods, although the landslides have been temporarily repaired by the road management unit, initially ensuring traffic, the risk of unsafety still exists. Many positive and negative slopes due to floods have been damaged and seriously eroded; many places where rocks and soil can easily fall onto the road surface in case of heavy rain; the roadside has been deeply eroded, and drainage ditches have been damaged.

For example, at Km146+980 on the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Highway, heavy rain caused a landslide of about 30m in length on the negative slope. The roadbed on the negative slope was severely eroded and swept away close to the riverbed; the corrugated iron guardrail was damaged, creating an especially dangerous area for vehicles traveling. At this location, although the road management force has stretched warning ropes and arranged speed limit signs, people passing by here always feel worried and insecure, especially at night.

As a regular traveler on the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Highway, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Hai (Kim Ngan Commune, Quang Tri ) shared his worries every time he passes through this section after heavy rains. Many landslides, damaged road surfaces, and deeply gouged sidewalks make travel more dangerous. At landslide and damaged points, although they have been temporarily repaired, people are still very insecure if there is no stable, long-term solution.

Mr. Nguyen Thanh Hung, Head of Traffic Management Department (483 Joint Stock Company) said that currently, at the landslide sites of negative and positive slopes, the unit has mobilized machines, scooped and leveled rocks and soil; stretched ropes and barriers to warn vehicles passing through. At the same time, the landslide area is temporarily reinforced with soil and sand bags; fabric and tarpaulin are spread to create barriers to prevent surface water to reduce erosion when it rains; and lanes are divided to ensure temporary traffic while waiting for a long-term solution.

According to statistics, due to the impact of storm No. 12 from October 24 to November 6, Quang Tri had heavy rain. On the Ho Chi Minh Highway, the Western branch, passing through the province, there were 30 large and small landslides with a volume of 11,926m3; 874 m3 of mud mixed with gravel, soil and rock filled drainage ditches at 59 locations; 2,093 m3 of mud mixed with gravel, soil and rock filled drainage ditches at 53 locations. In addition, there were 28 damaged roadside locations; 51 damaged drainage ditches; 20 damaged drainage ditches and 1 damaged road surface location.

Mr. Hoang Khac Son, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of 483 Joint Stock Company, said that during the recent flood caused by storm No. 12, the unit proactively responded with the "4 on-site" motto. With great spirit and determination, the unit mobilized human resources, machinery and equipment to focus on overcoming landslides to clear the route at blocked locations after only about 4 hours.

However, at present, many landslides and damage points have been repaired, and the repair work is only temporary to clear the route. Currently, on the Ho Chi Minh Expressway West, there are still many problems to be dealt with, especially at 4 negative slope locations that are at great risk of landslides and cannot last long.

In addition, on the Ho Chi Minh Expressway, the road surface is only 3.5m wide when vehicles coming from the opposite direction have to go to the shoulder. However, due to storms and over 20 years of use without upgrading, the shoulder has been damaged in many places, posing a risk of insecurity as the density of people and vehicles passing by increases. In parallel, many damaged drainage ditches also affect the structure of the road surface. Therefore, it is necessary to have a timely reinforcement and restoration plan from the authorities.

According to Mr. Hoang Khac Son, the long-term solution to ensure safety on the Ho Chi Minh Highway West branch is very urgent. However, the implementation faces many difficulties and funding is very limited. In particular, when there is a policy, it takes 1-2 years to have funding, so the unit must self-finance the construction until completion. In addition, to implement the construction, there are many steps and procedures, so it is very slow.

Mr. Bui Trong Tue, Head of Road Management Office 2.4 (Road Management Area 2, Vietnam Road Administration) said that during the recent flood caused by storm No. 12, dozens of damaged points on the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Highway, negative slopes, positive slopes, and landslides appeared. The unit has directed Joint Stock Company 483, the regular maintenance unit, to focus on implementing remedial measures to ensure traffic safety.

In addition, at the landslide and damaged locations, the unit has also coordinated with Joint Stock Company 483 to determine the volume, make detailed plans, and prepare cost estimates to submit to Road Management Area 2 (Vietnam Road Administration) for permission to invest in repairs to ensure traffic safety on the Ho Chi Minh Highway West branch. While waiting for the opinion of the competent authority, the Office continues to direct the unit to regularly maintain barriers and guard to ensure traffic safety at dangerous locations such as: road cracks, landslides on the route.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/xa-hoi/quang-tri-som-khac-phuc-hu-hong-sat-lo-tren-duong-ho-chi-minh-nhanh-tay-20251115155805637.htm