Unsafe when crossing the river at Phuong ferry (Thanh Chuong)

Phuong ferry, connecting Thanh Yen and Thanh Giang communes, is one of the important waterway routes in Thanh Chuong district. This ferry serves the travel needs of not only the people of the two communes but also neighboring localities such as Thanh Luong, Thanh Khai, Thanh Xuan, etc.

Phuong ferry is one of the important waterway traffic points in Thanh Chuong district. Photo: QA

Every day, the number of people passing through Phuong ferry is quite large, however, according to the reporter's observation, the ferry still has some problems.

When boarding a boat to cross the river, although the boat is equipped with life jackets, the boat owners and passengers rarely or never wear life jackets. It is worth mentioning that Phuong ferry was once a ferry that the National Traffic Safety Committee and the Traffic Safety Committee of Nghe An province used to be a model for distributing free life jackets and encouraging people to wear life jackets when taking the boat.

Besides, the ferry landing point is only built with crude planks. Every time the ferry docks, the planks always sway and must be tied tightly to the support bars. People getting on and off the ferry must have a steady hand on the wheel or they could fall into the river at any moment.

People get on and off the boat using only a rudimentary plank and almost never wear life jackets during the journey. Photo: QA

In addition, the landslide at the ferry terminal has not been resolved. The road to the ferry in Thanh Yen commune is still muddy when it rains and there are no lights when boarding the ferry at night. The road to the ferry in Thanh Giang commune, although upgraded, has a steep slope and is highly slippery during the rainy season.

Not only that, according to regulations, each ferry trip can only carry a maximum of 12 people/trip, however, according to observations, there are times when the number of people on the boat is double that number. This causes the boat to exceed its capacity.

In fact, there have been cases of people and vehicles falling into the Lam River at Phuong ferry. The most recent case was on November 19, 2020, Mr. TVK, Thanh Giang commune, was a ferryman, when preparing to transport passengers across the river, he fell into the Lam River and died.

Discussing this issue, Mr. Bui Huu Chuong - Chairman of Thanh Yen Commune People's Committee said: The local authorities of Thanh Yen and Thanh Giang communes regularly assign forces to inspect and remind people about safety when crossing the ferry, especially wearing life jackets and carrying the correct number of people according to regulations. However, there are times when the ferry owners do not strictly comply, the locality will have measures to handle this issue.

The landslide situation on Lam River bank, Phuong ferry crossing has been happening continuously in recent years. Photo: QA

"Regarding the degraded road condition, at the end of 2022, Thanh Yen commune proposed to Thanh Chuong district People's Committee to support funding to upgrade the ferry route in the area. In addition, to prevent landslides, every year, the locality organizes tree planting to prevent erosion along the riverbank. If we want to completely overcome this situation, we must build embankments, however, the locality does not have enough authority and funding to do this," Mr. Chuong emphasized.

Upgrading and tightening measures to ensure safety for people traveling through Phuong ferry is still the wish of the people here./.