Ca Mau overcomes "subsidence" of freshwater areas in the dry season

When the rural road of Quang Hao canal, Tran Hoi commune, Tran Van Thoi district, Ca Mau was completed and put into use, local people were very happy. However, not long after, the drought in the dry season of 2023 - 2024 caused many sections to collapse into the canal banks, causing traffic jams.

“When the road was completed, people here were very happy to go back and forth, and their children could easily go to school, and the elderly and sick could easily go to the hospital. Not long after, the road collapsed into the river, making travel difficult. Now people are hoping that the road will be repaired quickly, which is an urgent need,” said Mr. Bui Vu Linh, a resident on the road.

In the whole district of Tran Van Thoi, Ca Mau, there are still 22 roads that have suffered severe subsidence and have not been repaired.

The dry season of 2023 - 2024 is a sad dry season for people in the freshwater area of ​​Tran Van Thoi district. The water in the fields receded rapidly, the rivers dried up, not only causing damage to production, but also causing more than 700 subsidence and landslides. Most of the subsidence incidents damaged rural traffic routes. Not only Tran Hoi commune, but also Khanh Binh Tay Bac, Khanh Loc, Khanh Hai communes, ... have had dozens of subsidence and landslides and many traffic routes have been cut off.

“The phenomenon of road subsidence has been happening in many places for more than a year now. The danger is that many students do not know the way, and when they fall into the sinkhole, they have to be rescued by others. At first, the commune held a meeting with the people to discuss donating land to build the road, but so far there has been no implementation,” said Mr. Nguyen Van Hoc, in Khanh Loc commune, Tran Van Thoi district.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tam, in Khanh Loc commune, Tran Van Thoi district, said: “The road has collapsed, forcing people to go in circles. Some people have to park their vehicles on the other side of the river. The road was previously 3 meters wide, but now it has collapsed and needs to be repaired quickly. No matter how small or large it is, it must be reconnected so that people can travel conveniently. There are roads on both sides of the river, but this side is higher than the other side, and during the rainy season, the road on the other side is flooded and cannot be used. People all hope that the road will be repaired as soon as possible.”

In the dry season of 2023 - 2024, the freshwater area of ​​Tran Van Thoi district suffered great damage due to water shortage.

According to the People's Committee of Tran Van Thoi district, subsidence in the first months of 2025 has damaged 139 roads, nearly 19km long, causing damage of more than 28 billion VND. To date, the district has repaired 117 roads with 540 locations, more than 14km long, with a total cost of 18 billion VND. The remaining roads are being repaired to be completed in the dry season this year.

“For small landslides, the district mobilizes people to fix them themselves, and at the same time, allocates the district and commune budgets to fix other spots. The district is continuing to allocate the remaining budget from the new rural construction fund to fix the remaining spots. For routes managed by the agricultural sector, the district has proposed that this unit allocate funds to jointly fix large landslides. The work of fixing subsidence is continuing to be implemented, and the functional units are carrying it out as soon as possible, aiming to complete it early in the dry season this year,” said Mr. Nguyen The Chau, Chairman of the People's Committee of Tran Van Thoi district.

Many collapsed roads have been repaired by authorities and people.

This dry season, the freshwater area of ​​Tran Van Thoi district has not experienced any subsidence or landslides. However, there are still 22 roads with about 160 landslides and subsidence points from last dry season that have not been repaired. Most of these points are serious, difficult to fix and require a large amount of funding. People are still waiting for the roads to be cleared for easier travel.