Ensuring safety for downstream flood season 2024

Trung Son Hydropower Plant is a multi-purpose project. In addition to significantly supplementing the national grid, the plant also plays a role in flood control and contributes to the climate change response program in Vietnam by limiting CO2 emissions into the environment. Before the annual storm season, Trung Son Hydropower Company Limited (TSHPCo) has proactively implemented disaster prevention and control solutions to ensure operational safety during the flood season for the project and downstream areas.

TSHPCo and local authorities conduct field inspection of flood discharge flow downstream of Ma River. Photo: TRUNG SINH

On July 4, 2024, TSHPCo coordinated with the People's Committees of Trung Son, Thanh Son, and Trung Thanh communes (Quan Hoa) to conduct a field inspection of the current status of flood discharge from the downstream of Trung Son Hydropower Dam to the upstream of Thanh Son Hydropower Plant. This is an annual task for the company and local authorities to detect and promptly handle violations and encroachments on the corridor for safe flood discharge; at the same time, prevent and limit damage caused by natural disasters downstream during the flood season.

According to TSHPCo representative, through field inspection, it shows that the current flow ensures safe flood drainage. However, as in previous years, along the flood drainage corridor, there are still some temporary huts, temporary houses and newly built livestock farms at locations along the Ma River. These temporary huts will not ensure safety, are prone to landslides when there is rain and flood; at the same time, they pose a risk to the safety of human life and property of the people.

After the field inspection, to ensure the safety of human life and property of people during the 2024 flood season, after the inspection, the working group agreed to let the local authorities propagate and disseminate to people measures to reinforce and relocate houses from dangerous locations, not to build houses or set up tents in locations prone to landslides along the Ma River, not to allow water transport vehicles (ships, boats, rafts...) and people within 400m from the downstream of the dam (at Co Me village, Trung Son commune, Quan Hoa district - where there are prohibition signs).

TSHPCo will be responsible for complying with the inter-reservoir operation process on the Ma River basin approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, strictly implementing the reservoir operation orders of the Head of the Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and Civil Defense of Thanh Hoa province to prevent floods for downstream areas; at the same time, fully and promptly implementing notices and warning signals when regulating reservoir floods according to regulations.

Periodically before the annual flood season, TSHPCo also inspected 20 warning stations, including 15 siren warning stations belonging to the Emergency Flood Warning System (EPP) from Trung Son Hydropower Plant to Cam Thuy district; 5 verbal warning stations broadcast in 3 languages ​​(Vietnamese, Thai, Muong) in Trung Son commune (Quan Hoa). With verbal warning stations, when it is necessary to notify reservoir regulation, release water through spillways, run machines..., the operator sends "commands" through the software on the computer, the processor will send commands to each selected station or all 5 stations through the communication module. These systems also automatically monitor, warn of errors and send them to the main station for the operator to recognize and handle.

Careful preparation and support, close coordination with local authorities in disaster prevention and search and rescue are the basis for Trung Son Hydropower Plant to operate safely, perform well the tasks of supporting flood regulation, reservoirs, ensuring the safety of downstream areas during the rainy and stormy season.

Bach Nguyen

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/bao-dam-an-toan-cho-ha-du-mua-lu-nam-2024-219654.htm