Residents of riverside fishing villages struggle with prolonged flooding

TPO - Every time the rainy season comes, the Hoa Lam residential area (Hung Hoa commune, Vinh city, Nghe An) is flooded for days. Flooding not only affects people's lives but also damages many properties and livestock of the people.

Video of floodwaters inundating the fishing village of Hoa Lam (Hung Hoa, Vinh City, Nghe An) making people's lives difficult and miserable.

Over the past 4 days, although the weather has cleared up, the Hoa Lam residential area (Hung Hoa commune, Vinh city, Nghe An ) is still flooded .

Accordingly, Hoa Lam residential area (Thuan Hoa hamlet, Hung Hoa commune, Vinh city, Nghe An) is home to dozens of households working as fishermen in the lower Lam river . Because it is located outside the dike, this residential area often suffers from flooding , especially during the rainy and stormy season.

Since September 22, prolonged heavy rains combined with floodwaters from upstream have caused the Lam River to rise. Since then, the entire Hoa Lam residential area has been submerged in water.

Having just repaired a chicken coop damaged by the flood, Mr. Dau Van Thanh (75 years old, resident of Hoa Lam residential area) said that the river water level rises depending on the tide and flood water from upstream. The water level rose highest and strongest in the early morning of September 23. "That day, the water level rose into the house. Because I have lived here for many years and am used to it, I proactively put the furniture up high. Currently, the water is receding to the door and garden but it is still slow," Mr. Thanh shared.

On the night of September 22 and September 23, water rose and flooded into houses. People in the neighborhood constantly monitored to evacuate people and property to safety. Photo: Ha Hang

Village roads and alleys of Hoa Lam residential area are still submerged in flood water.

Mr. Tran Trung Quan - Chairman of Hung Hoa Commune People's Committee said that Hoa Lam residential area has 82 households. Because it is located outside the Lam River dike, people often have to endure flooding whenever the river water rises or the tide rises. During this flood, the commune government issued a document and sent functional forces to evacuate the elderly and children into the dike to ensure safety. The older young people stayed behind to raise their property and household items.

Inside the houses, there is an additional iron rack for storing things. Important items will be carefully wrapped in plastic bags and placed high up to avoid damage from flooding.

On September 25, the water began to recede. However, the row of houses near the riverbank were still flooded about 30-40cm.

The water was flooded so people had to park their motorbikes and bicycles outside the village gate and then wade into their houses.

When the water receded, people began to clean up the trash stuck to the door and wipe off the mud. "We get used to flooding here almost every year. We have to wait for the time when the water has just receded to use flood water to clean, because when the water has completely receded, cleaning is very difficult," said Ms. Le Thi Nhan (65 years old).

"The other day the water was so deep that it reached our house. We had to move inside the dike for safety. Today the water has started to recede so we came back to clean up. It was very hard work," said Nguyen Thi Huong (54 years old).

People in Hoa Lam residential area said that life here is very miserable because it is located outside the dike, close to the river bank. That is why every year, the residential area is deeply flooded. People want to move to the resettlement area inside the dike soon, but after many years of waiting, they have not been able to move.

Every day, many families struggle to live in cramped houses. People even have to put their beds in the yard. “My family has 3 generations, 8 members living here. The garden is 300 square meters wide but we cannot separate the land for our children. The house was built decades ago, cramped, degraded, there is no space for children to live and study but they are not allowed to expand or repair. Almost every year, this place floods, some years the river water rises to the roof. I am old, I am used to living with floods, but my children and grandchildren, if they stay here for a long time, it will be very dangerous,” said Mr. Chu Sinh Huy (born in 1958), adding that he hopes that the authorities will soon move people to the new resettlement area.

Given the urgency mentioned above, the authorities of Nghe An province have approved a project to build infrastructure for an emergency resettlement area for people to evacuate from the disaster area. However, due to lack of capital, the project was not implemented until 2020. Due to the project's slow progress, from 58 households to be relocated, Hoa Lam residential area now has 82 households to be relocated. The resettlement area for Hoa Lam residential area is built on an area of ​​over 3 hectares, about 200m from the old residential area.

Mr. Tran Trung Quan - Chairman of Hung Hoa Commune People's Committee - said that the infrastructure of the resettlement area for 58 households (phase 1) has been completed, but has not been handed over and put into use. As for phase 2, the resettlement land arrangement for additional households is currently in the process of site clearance. "We have requested the authorities to promptly carry out the relocation of people so that they can settle down and make a living" - Mr. Quan said.

Tienphong.vn

Source: https://tienphong.vn/cu-dan-xom-chai-ven-song-chat-vat-trong-ngap-lut-dai-ngay-post1676454.tpo