Living in fear

Everyone wants to escape from living in a dangerous place, but because they don't have the conditions to leave, many people have to accept staying.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the handling of old apartment buildings has long encountered many difficulties. Recently, specific regulations on investment procedures, incentive mechanisms and support levels are believed to completely resolve this issue.

"Do not approach"

In February 2023, Ton That Thuyet apartment building in Ward 4, District 4, Ho Chi Minh City had an incident of collapsing beams, corridor floors and railing walls of block C. Fortunately, the incident at this level D apartment building - which is dangerous and severely damaged - did not cause any casualties.

Recent observations by a reporter from Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper show that the affected area has been reinforced with steel pillars, the damaged area has been patched up and the corridor floor has been restored with concrete. However, the B40 mesh fence with a "Do not approach" warning sign at this apartment building always creates concern for anyone entering or leaving.

Local residents said that District 4 People's Committee has organized many conferences on the quality of Ton That Thuyet apartment building as well as discussed emergency evacuation plans, but so far, the majority of residents still choose to stay.

Vinh Hoi Apartment Building (District 4, Ho Chi Minh City) has many danger warning signs. Photo: AI MY

Mr. Lam Nhat Dong has lived on the first floor of block C of Ton That Thuyet apartment building for decades. His family has 8 people from 3 generations and they are all attached to this apartment building for many reasons despite knowing the danger. He confided that no one wants to leave the house that they have been attached to all their lives and that is convenient for their current life. However, if the apartment building is demolished, people will move, they just hope that the government will have appropriate support policies to help them stabilize their lives in the new place.

Hesitating about staying or going

Not far away, Vinh Hoi apartment building (District 4) was classified as level D nearly 10 years ago, surrounded by many red signs warning of danger.

Here, the ceiling and railings are peeling, exposing rusted steel cores, the fire protection system is broken, and electrical wires are overlapping like spider webs all over the walkways... More worryingly, some of the load-bearing columns on the balcony are cracked and sinking. The local government has temporarily reinforced this apartment building with supporting iron bars and iron mesh around the ceiling to limit the risk.

Recalling the times when concrete fell from the ceiling, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam, a resident of Vinh Hoi apartment building, worried: "Luckily no one was injured." The woman who has lived in this apartment building with many siblings since she was 3 years old, hopes that when the city clears and rebuilds new apartments, residents will enjoy appropriate resettlement policies and have a house to stabilize their lives.

Also in District 4, the Truc Giang D-class apartment building shows signs of deterioration through blackened walls and grass growing from cracks. The stairs leading to the upper-floor apartments have been locked, leaving the building almost deserted. Most of the residents have moved elsewhere, with two households still remaining.

"The local government has contacted us many times and asked my family to accept relocation, after the new apartment building is built, we will have the opportunity to buy a house at a preferential price. However, because we are not really assured, my family has not left yet" - Mr. La Trong Loan, one of the two remaining households, stated the reason.

More than 500 households are worried

In the direction of Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City, there are still dozens of households living in the D-class apartment building 137 Ly Thuong Kiet. They said that any house with small children cannot stand the cramped, dirty, damp walls, and leaky ceilings. Although the city issued a directive to relocate in 2018, the implementation process has not been completed.

At apartment building 137 Ly Thuong Kiet (Tan Binh district, Ho Chi Minh City), residents have long lived in damp, cramped, and degraded conditions. Photo: CHI NGUYEN

"We have been waiting for years and nothing has happened. The city has had a relocation plan for a long time, but until now, we still cannot go anywhere," said Mr. Hung Anh, who has lived in apartment building 137 Ly Thuong Kiet for more than 30 years. He said that no one wants to live forever in such dilapidated and dangerous houses but "doesn't have the means to leave."

100 meters away is the apartment building 149-151 Ly Thuong Kiet. Images of this place where more than 20 households still live show that the load-bearing pillars in the apartment building have cracked, many cracks extending from the bottom up...

Ho Chi Minh City has 474 old apartment buildings (753 lots) built before 1975. Through inspection and classification, 16 apartment buildings are classified as level D. Of these, 14 level D apartment buildings were classified in the 2016-2017 period and 2 apartment buildings were determined to be level D in 2020. These apartment buildings are subject to demolition and reconstruction.

Regarding the organization of temporary residence for residents of apartment buildings of class D, the Department of Construction of Ho Chi Minh City proposed that the city approve the policy of transferring the common ownership of Phu Tho apartment building to the Center for Housing Management and Construction Inspection for repair so that it can be handed over to Tan Binh District. Thereby, organizing the relocation of residents of apartment buildings 137 and 149-151 Ly Thuong Kiet to temporarily reside here.

According to data from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Construction, to date, all 454 households in 8 apartment buildings have been relocated.

Specifically, they are apartment building 128 Hai Ba Trung, apartment building 23 Ly Tu Trong, apartment building 155-157 Bui Vien (District 1); apartment building 6 Bis Nguyen Tat Thanh (District 4); apartment building 40/1 Tan Phuoc, apartment building 47 Long Hung, apartment building 170-171 Tan Chau (Tan Binh District) and apartment building 440 Tran Hung Dao (District 5).

The city has 4 unfinished apartment buildings with 150/466 households, including: apartment building 11 Vo Van Tan, District 3 (18/19 households); apartment building 119B Tan Hoa Dong, District 6 (70/80 households); apartment building Truc Giang (121/123 households), apartment building Vinh Hoi, District 4 (lots A, B, C; 12/244 households).

The remaining four apartment buildings with 274 households have not yet been relocated. They are apartment building 137 Ly Thuong Kiet, apartment building 149-151 Ly Thuong Kiet (Tan Binh district); Ton That Thuyet apartment building lots A, B, C (district 4); Hoang Dieu apartment building lot Y (district 4). Thus, up to now, in Ho Chi Minh City, there are still more than 500 out of 1,194 households still living in class D apartment buildings.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/go-vuong-cho-hang-loat-chung-cu-cu-song-trong-nom-nop-lo-au-196250323205931993.htm