From Lao Cai to Thai Nguyen, a journey full of love towards the flood area

While Thai Nguyen was submerged in water after the storm No. 11, many people from Lao Cai stayed up all night to wrap nearly 2,000 banh chung to give to people in the flooded areas. Some people traveled hundreds of kilometers with canoes and motorboats to rush into the flood to rescue people.

Cakes of love

On the evening of October 8, at Dung Hoan Hot Pot - Rice Restaurant (Cau Thia ward, old Nghia Lo), under the yellow light from the kitchen, dozens of people wrapped banh chung together, each hand moving quickly, sticky rice, meat, and dong leaves were neatly arranged.

Everyone understands that these 2,000 banh chung are not just food, but also packages of love sent to the people of Thai Nguyen , who are struggling in the floodwaters after the circulation of storm No. 11.

Traffic police and dozens of people together quickly wrapped banh chung, each handful of sticky rice, piece of meat, and dong leaves were neatly arranged to be transported to Thai Nguyen.

Captain Bui Thanh Nam, Deputy Head of Traffic Police Team No. 4, along with Major Le Viet Hung and Senior Lieutenant Do Anh Tu, officers of the Traffic Police Department of Lao Cai Provincial Police, were also present early.

They not only help people transport dong leaves and tie cakes, but also guide people to travel safely and support the organization of cooking cakes overnight.

"We do this with all our hearts," said Tran Thi Hoan, the restaurant owner's wife, while wiping sweat from her cheeks.

Ms. Hoan said: "Last year, when storm Yagi passed, people from Thai Nguyen also came to Lao Cai to help us a lot. So today, when Thai Nguyen is in trouble, we have to repay that favor."

These 2,000 banh chung cakes are not just food, but also packages of love sent to the people of Thai Nguyen, who are struggling in the floodwaters after the circulation of storm No. 11.

According to plan, all the banh chung will be cooked overnight to be transported early the next morning by two trips organized by Dung Hoan's family.

In addition to banh chung, people and vendors around the area also brought drinks, cakes, instant noodles, and necessities - each gift, no matter how small, contained a sense of sharing.

In Lao Cai, many people were moved when witnessing this image. Just one year ago, this very land was submerged in floodwaters.

The painful memories have not yet subsided, but now they have turned into strength for Lao Cai people to turn to other places to "use love to erase the pain".

White night taking the canoe to the flood center

While the volunteer convoy from Lao Cai was still on the way, another group had quietly left before. They were members of the Thac Ba Lake Water Sports Club, headed by Mr. Doan The Tai.

15 motorboats of Thac Ba Lake Water Sports Club were immediately put on the road, heading straight to the flooded area of ​​Thai Nguyen.

As soon as they heard the news that flash floods had cut off many residential areas in Thai Nguyen city, 15 motorboats from the club were immediately put on the road, heading straight to the flooded area.

"No one told anyone, just hearing the two words 'save people', everyone set off," Mr. Tai recounted.

At noon on October 8, in the harsh sunlight of the flood season, their canoes still persistently "crawled" through the rushing water, trying to get deep into small alleys to bring people out of the flooded areas.

On a canoe, nearly 20 people were crowded together, including children, the elderly and women. All were soaked, but their eyes lit up when they saw the orange shirts of the rescue team.

As they were about to turn around, they heard a faint cry from afar. A middle-aged man with a haggard face sat perched on the gatepost, waving his hands frantically.

The water flowed strongly, the walls and roofs were close together, but the brothers still tried to move forward, using two bamboo poles at each end to avoid hitting hard objects.

Once safe, the man trembled and asked for help to go out to buy a corrugated iron boat so he could return to pick up his sick father at home.

But when he heard the request "let us go back and take him out", he was silent, then burst into tears: "My father... just passed away. I went out to buy a boat to take him out".

Thac Ba Lake Water Sports Club provides relief to Thai Nguyen people.

No one said another word. The whole group was silent on the canoe, except for the sound of wind and water lapping against the sides of the boat.

The team members offered to help the family carry the man out for the funeral, but the man only bowed his head in thanks and said he wanted to "carry his father out with his own hands."

"The image of a man wearing a black shirt and a conical hat sitting at the bow of the boat, his choked sobs… will be something I will never forget.

We didn't have time to ask for names or addresses, we just had time to say goodbye in the middle of the white-haired water," Doan The Tai recounted.

Early morning on October 9, in Lao Cai, the first banh chung cakes just taken out of the pot were loaded onto truck with license plate 21A-221.03 and vehicle 21C-085.19.

The words "Nghia Lo truck carrying relief goods to Thai Nguyen" were hastily pasted on the cargo box with red tape, but lit up the entire restaurant yard.

In the midst of storms and floods, amidst news of damage and loss, there are still small stories like this, simple yet touching.

From the hands wrapping cakes of the people of Cau Thia (Nghia Lo), to the oars of the children of Thac Ba in the midst of the rolling water, all tell the same message: "When the flood passes, human love will remain."

baoxaydung.vn

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/tu-lao-cai-den-thai-nguyen-hanh-trinh-nang-nghia-tinh-huong-ve-vung-lu-post884072.html