Prolonged periods of drought and lack of water reservoirs have caused large areas of rice paddies in ADơk commune, Đak Đoa district (Gia Lai province) to wither and dry up. It is predicted that with the current intensity of the heat and drought, the area of ​​rice paddies affected by the drought will increase further.

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The rice fields in Dak Kut are in the heading stage but have already turned a burnt yellow color. Photo: Tran Hoan

Many rice fields in Dak Kut are reaching the heading stage but have already turned yellow, causing anxiety and worry among the local people. Many households have had to abandon their crops and cut them down to use as feed for their buffaloes and cows...

Ms. Blan (born in 1974, A Dơk commune) sadly shared that her family owns a total of 2.5 acres of rice paddies and 400 coffee trees. If the harvest is good, they average about 8 quintals of rice per season, enough food to feed five people in the household.

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Large areas of rice fields have dried up and are beyond recovery. Photo: Tran Hoan

This year, the rice plants were in the heading stage, but the fields were dry and cracked, so Mrs. Blan's family lost everything and had to cut the rice to feed their cows.

Watching the villagers harvest rice to feed their buffaloes and cows, Mr. Sưi (born in 1968, A Dơk commune) said that he has been working in the Đăk Kút rice fields for many years. This is the first time that a drought has caused the rice to dry up and wither so quickly, even at the beginning of the hot season.

"The people in my hometown suffer a lot. They work hard plowing, sowing, and tending for months, but they're not guaranteed a harvest. If the weather isn't kind, they lose everything because it depends entirely on the conditions," Mr. Sưi confided.

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Photo: Tran Hoan

The prolonged drought has left people feeling extremely anxious.

According to local residents, the cause of this situation is the lack of rain since the beginning of the year, which has lowered the groundwater level, dried up the Dak Kut canals, and left no water for irrigation. Meanwhile, there are no ponds or lakes in the area to store water for support.

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The rice crop was completely destroyed, forcing farmers to cut it down. Photo: Tran Hoan

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoai Thu, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of ADok commune, the total area for rice cultivation in the 2024-2025 Winter-Spring crop in the commune is 120 hectares, of which the area of ​​rice fields affected by water shortage is estimated at about 46 hectares, with damage levels ranging from 70% to total crop loss.

According to the Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of ADơk commune, although irrigation has been carried out, the locality currently lacks water sources and is unable to remedy the situation. In the coming time, the People's Committee of the commune will continue to review and specifically compile statistics on the rice fields affected by drought and propose to higher authorities for support to restore production according to regulations.

According to Mr. Nguyen Kim Anh, Head of the Agriculture and Rural Development Department of Dak Doa district, not only in ADok commune, but also in the Dak Kol rice field (Trang commune), about 2.5 hectares of rice have been severely damaged and are beyond recovery.

According to Mr. Nguyen Kim Anh, statistics show that these localities have estimated damages of nearly 580 million VND so far.