Inside a dilapidated apartment building in Hanoi, every time it rains, the house leaks and water floods.

Video: People talk about miserable lives in their own homes.

This is a collective house that is over 60 years old and is now in serious disrepair, making residents always fearful.

Anyone who comes here will see a narrow, dark, deep hallway with horrifying, festering walls.

Along the long dark hallway, the ceiling was peeling, threatening to fall on people's heads at any moment.

Ms. Lien's house is at the end of the corridor of block A. Every time it rains, her family and the neighbors next door have to live in a "nightmare" because water will quickly flood the corridor and even spill into the house.

For decades, Ms. Lien has had to "live with floods" right in the middle of Hanoi. Ms. Lien said: "The rainy season here is a nightmare, the ceiling leaks, the floor water rises by itself. Every time it rains for about an hour, we have to bail water for three hours straight so that the floor can dry up."

Mrs. Lien's house has an additional 30cm high step.

Many years ago, the water in this apartment complex flooded up to the door of the house. Ms. Lien and many other households had to build a 30cm high water barrier right in front of the door because the water outside the hallway often rose 20cm during heavy rains.

However, in recent years, this water barrier has not been very effective because it only prevents water from outside from entering the house, but when water flows out of the house, it can only lie there and endure the consequences.

“It only took about 10 minutes of rain for the water to seep through the cracks in the tiles and invade the entire floor. There was no way to fix it. I could only sit and scoop the water out,” Ms. Lien recounted in frustration.

It is known that this is the common situation of most households living on the first floor, in buildings A, B, C of the Thang Long tobacco collective housing area.

"We have petitioned the ward and management agency many times, but the problem has not been resolved yet," said a resident living on the first floor of building B.

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, water floods the house - 5

On a sunny day, the first floor corridor of building C still leaks water because the water pipes are degraded.

That is the miserable situation on the first floor. On the second and third floors, although they do not have to endure the water rising from under the floor, they have to endure the water leaking and dampness from inside the house to the hallway. A homeowner on the second floor of building A said: " Even on the second floor, I have to endure the water dripping into a stream every time it rains. Every time it rains, I have to use a basin to catch the water in my own house ."

Ms. Do Thi Nguyet Nga (60 years old), deputy head of residential group 12 (including buildings A and B) said that on the 3rd floor of building A, every time it rains, water from the ceiling flows down like a waterfall. "Because this building was built in 1958-1959, it is now over 60 years old and has deteriorated, many places can no longer hold back the rainwater."

Current state of degradation at Thang Long tobacco collective housing area.

Ms. Nga is also a resident of a house on the first floor of block A. In addition to building a water barrier in front of the house, Ms. Nga's family has also proactively used lime mortar to plaster the base of the house wall along the hallway so that when it rains, water will not seep through the wall into the house.

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, the house leaks and water floods - 9

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, water floods the house - 10

Old walls cannot prevent water from seeping into the house.

In addition, all the people here have to live in fear every day because the plaster on the ceiling can fall down and hit people's heads at any time.

According to a survey by VTC News reporters, large patches of plaster have peeled off from every floor of these old apartment buildings. In some places, several square meters of ceiling plaster have fallen off, revealing the jagged iron bars inside.

Every time we pass through the hallway or stairs, as an unforgettable habit, we have to look up at the ceiling for fear of plaster falling on our heads.

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, the house leaks and water floods - 11

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, the house leaks and water floods - 12

Danger warning, ceilings are peeling and plastered all over the hallways and stairs.

Along the hallway, warning signs "Attention to danger of collapsing ceiling" are posted everywhere to remind people to be very careful when passing through the hallway.

“ One day, I saw with my own eyes a piece of the ceiling fall down right when a student was passing by. Another time, the ceiling fell down and tore the seat of a motorbike parked in the hallway. Or the ceiling in the bathroom fell on the toilet, luckily no one was in there, ” Ms. Nga shuddered as she recounted.

Thang Long Tobacco Collective has 3 old 3-storey apartment buildings built in 1958. Each room is about 15.5m2 wide. Each floor has 2 shared toilets right at the staircase area.

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, water floods the house - 13

Inside a dilapidated apartment complex in Hanoi, every time it rains, water floods the house - 14

The public restroom is rundown and smelly.

In block A, as soon as you step near the first floor staircase, you can already smell the strong stench coming from the shared restroom. Even though they hire someone to clean it every day, the stench cannot be completely removed because there are too many people using it. It is annoying, but they still have to use the shared restroom every day because their private homes are too small, and the design of the water pipes does not allow each house to build its own restroom.

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