Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Hong Vinh inspected and directed flood response work in Western Nghe An.

Accompanying were comrades: Dang Thanh Tung - Member of the Provincial Party Executive Committee, Chief of Office of the Provincial People's Committee; Pham Hong Quang - Member of the Provincial Party Executive Committee, Director of the Department of Construction; Colonel Dinh Bat Van - Commander of the Nghe An Provincial Military Command.

According to information from the Director of the Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, the circulation of storm No. 3 has caused very heavy rain in the western mountainous area of ​​Nghe An province with common rainfall from 120 - 200mm, many places over 300mm (in the past 24 hours), at the same time heavy rain has and will continue to occur in the upper reaches of the Ca River in Lao territory.

The flood flow to Ban Ve hydropower reservoir is at a very high level (the flood flow to the reservoir at 22:45 on July 22, 2025 was 10,044 m3/s, exceeding the design flood flow of 7,770 m3/s), the upstream water level of the reservoir is rising very rapidly, with the risk of exceeding the normal water level on the morning of July 23, 2025; there is a very high risk of flash floods, landslides on steep slopes, along rivers and streams, and deep flooding in low-lying areas.

According to Urgent Notice No. 604 issued by the Provincial People's Committee at 9:00 p.m. on July 22, 2025, the water flow to the upstream of Ban Ve Hydropower Reservoir reached 9,543m³/s, nearly reaching the peak flood flow threshold of 10,500m³/s, equivalent to a flood frequency of 0.02%.

Faced with this situation, Ban Ve Lake is reducing floods, currently discharging downstream at a flow rate of 1,727m³/s and is expected to increase rapidly in the coming time.

The Provincial People's Committee requested relevant departments, branches and sectors, especially the Provincial Military Command, Provincial Police, and local authorities in the downstream areas of Ban Ve Hydropower Plant to urgently deploy response measures.

In particular, it is necessary to urgently mobilize all forces and means to support the evacuation of people and assets to a safe place; ensure smooth communication and timely report to the Provincial People's Committee, the Provincial Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention - Search and Rescue and Civil Defense, and relevant agencies when situations and incidents occur.

Ban Ve Hydropower Plant is the largest hydropower project in Nghe An province and the North Central region, with a designed capacity of 320MW and a basin area of ​​more than 8,700km².

During a field inspection along National Highway 7, especially in the area of ​​​​Vuc Bong Strait (Con Cuong commune), Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Hong Vinh listened to reports from functional forces and local authorities on the situation of floods, landslide risks and developments at reservoirs and irrigation dams.

After grasping the situation, comrade Le Hong Vinh requested localities and related units to step up propaganda work, warn people to absolutely not fish, salvage wood or cross the river to prevent unfortunate accidents; arrange human resources, means, especially ships and canoes to support evacuation, absolutely ensure the safety of people's lives and property.

The Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee also noted to strengthen inspection and close supervision of lakes and dams, promptly detect and handle potential incidents, and ensure safe operation of the works.

Next, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Hong Vinh inspected the Ban Mong Reservoir headworks cluster - a key irrigation and hydropower project in the region, built on the Hieu River.

The lake has an area of ​​about 25 km², mainly belonging to Quy Hop, Quy Chau, Nghia Dan districts (old) of Nghe An and part of Nhu Xuan district (old) of Thanh Hoa. The main project is located in Yen Hop commune, Quy Hop district (old), now Tam Hop commune, Nghe An province.

In phase 1, the lake has a designed capacity of 225 million m³, with 8 water pumping stations along the Hieu River and a 45 MW hydropower plant. The project is required by the Government to be completed and put into operation before December 31, 2025.

At the scene, Deputy Director of Nghe An Department of Agriculture and Environment Nguyen Hao said: On July 22, due to heavy rain, the upstream water level of the lake reached 71.1m, higher than the concrete spillway (63.6m). Currently, the lake has not been filled with water so it is freely draining through the gates. The project is still operating normally, ensuring safety.

To ensure the safety of the people, the Department of Agriculture and Environment has coordinated with localities to promptly review and grasp the upstream area of ​​Ban Mong reservoir; thereby promptly evacuating nearly 90 households in Chau Binh commune, old Quy Chau district to a safe place.

Along National Highway 48, the section through Chau Binh commune was partially flooded for 600m early this morning and is now about 350m, with an average flood depth of 1.5m. Here, the Provincial Military Command has arranged 2 motorboats to be on duty since morning to transport and support people to cross.

Through on-site inspection and listening to reports, after the two phases of prevention and response have passed, the Chairman of the People's Committee of Nghe An province requested departments, branches and localities to shift their focus to phase 3 (overcoming the consequences of floods); in which the forces must coordinate to ensure adequate supply of necessities for the affected people, not leaving anyone in need, ensuring the safety of people's lives and property; at the same time quickly restoring life and production.