(Baonghean.vn) - The scorching heat has depleted water resources in Muong Long commune (Ky Son district). All four villages – Muong Long 1, Muong Long 2, Trung Tam, and Loong Keo – share a few small water sources. Villagers often take advantage of nighttime hours to fetch water because they have to work in the fields and on the farms during the day.
As dusk fell, we strolled through Muong Long 1 village. It was already dinnertime, but many people were still riding their motorbikes, carrying 20-liter plastic containers to fetch water. The villagers' water source was the only remaining running water tank in the village. The road was quite steep and bumpy, but one woman in the village was carrying water on her motorbike while also taking her young child along so the child could bathe after a day of playing.
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| This mother took the opportunity to carry water and bring her young child along for a bath. |
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| Anh and Bá Cở, from Loong Kèo village, have to walk more than half a kilometer to fetch water. |
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| ...and carried water back on a motorbike up the steep mountain pass. |
Anh Va Ba Co, a water fetcher, said his house is in Loong Keo village, more than half a kilometer from the water reservoir. After returning from the fields each evening, he has to make 2-4 trips to fetch enough water for his family for the day. Every year, during the summer, Muong Long suffers from water shortages.
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| Sister and Y Phua collect water from a rock crevice. |
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| It took hours of meticulous work to fetch just a few buckets of water. |
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| These buckets of water will be used sparingly for daily activities. |
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| Due to a lack of water supply, this tank has been completely dry for over a month now. |
According to Mr. Va Ba Co, elderly people in Loong Keo village who cannot go far to fetch water have to scoop water spoonful by spoonful from a nearby water source. The elderly in the village often wake up in the middle of the night when no one else is at the water source to collect water for their use.
In Trung Tam village, many residents rely on water from a rocky crevice next to the commune's People's Committee office. It was almost midnight, but Ms. Ho Y Xia and her friend, Ms. Va Y Phua, were still fetching water. They scooped water with plastic ladles and poured it into buckets. Ms. Y Xia explained that she has to rush to fetch water every night because she's busy with her grocery store during the day. They have to use water very sparingly because getting it is already very hard work.
Ha Phuong
