Proposal to relocate a school affected by flash floods in Xiangyang

Danger lurks

From the center of Luong Minh commune, it took us more than half an hour on steep, winding, and zigzag roads to reach Luong Minh Primary Boarding School in the mountainous district of Tuong Duong. The school is located in the bottom of a slope, behind which is the Mat stream flowing day and night. Most of the students studying here are children of the Khmu and Thai ethnic groups. The whole school has 525 students, but 299 of them are boarding students.

Among the students who stay at the boarding school, there are many whose homes are 5-6 km away, even more than 20 km, making the journey extremely difficult and arduous. Therefore, students in villages such as Ca Moong, Xop Chao, Xop Mat, Minh Phuong... are only 8-10 years old when they leave home to seek education.

Housing in Xop Chao village, one of the most difficult and isolated villages in Luong Minh commune, to get to school, Hap Van Khanh has to walk to the boat dock, then go down to the upstream dock (at the foot of Ban Ve hydroelectric dam), and continue traveling by motorbike for nearly another hour to reach school.

Mr. Luong Van Duong, in Xop Mat village, Luong Minh commune, parent of Luong Nhu Y, a 4th grade student at the school, said: his daughter is still young, so it is impossible for her to go on the mountain roads and cross rivers and streams to get to school. Many times, parents taking their children to school also face danger when the water in the streams rises and flows rapidly during the rainy season. The roads are not only slippery, but also pose a risk of landslides. Because most of the roads from Luong Minh villages, including Xop Mat village, to school are roads with rivers and streams on one side and high mountains on the other, with many points threatening landslides.

Evidence is the flash flood in early October, many sections of the road to school were buried by rocks and soil from the mountains, seriously damaging the roadbed in many sections. "Every time the rainy season comes, parents are always worried when taking their children to school" - said Mr. Luong Van Duong.

As for Ms. Lo Thi Thin in Minh Phuong village, recalling the flash flood that occurred at the end of September, she was still in shock. Ms. Thin said: "It started to rain heavily at dusk on September 30, and the rain became heavier and heavier. At around 10 p.m., when I heard that the school had been flash-flooded, I felt like I was sitting on a pile of fire. I wanted to go to my child, but due to the heavy rain, the only road to the school was blocked by a landslide, so I had to stay home and wait for information. Fortunately, the school later announced that the children had been moved to a safe place by their teachers. I could hardly sleep that night. After the recent flash flood, not only me but almost all the parents really wanted the authorities to consider transferring the school to another, safer place. If we continue to organize teaching and learning at this location, it will not only affect teaching and learning, but also endanger both teachers and students of the school."

The most worrying thing is that this school is located with its back facing Mat stream, heavy rains have a high risk of flash floods. In fact, this has happened, in the past 2 years the school has suffered two flash floods, each year higher than the previous year, culminating in a serious flash flood that occurred on September 30, forcing teachers and students to flee the flood at night.

Proposal to relocate the school to a safe place

Mr. Luong Van Duong, a parent of a student, commented: “Last year (2023), a flood affected the school where my child was a boarding student. This year, the school had to endure a flash flood that was even bigger than last year. Natural disasters are increasingly unpredictable, so many of us parents hope that authorities and sectors will pay attention and move the school to another place so that teachers and children can have a safe learning environment.”

Not only parents but also school leaders and teachers want the school to move to another location soon, especially after the recent terrible flash flood.

Mr. Nguyen Van Thanh - Principal of Luong Minh Primary Boarding School, said: In recent years, Mat stream has been silted up, the stream has narrowed, the water has no way out so it flows strongly to both banks. Meanwhile, the school yard is not much higher than the stream bed, so heavy rains can easily cause flash floods. In the past 2 years, the school has had to endure 2 flash floods, causing confusion for teachers and parents.

Therefore, the school's wish is to receive attention and support from the Party Committee, the government, and all levels and sectors to move the school to a new location on a high hill, avoiding flash floods and landslides during the rainy season so that the students here can have the safest learning environment.

Talking with Mr. Vi Dinh Phuc - Chairman of the People's Committee of Luong Minh Commune, he said: Previously, the local Party Committee and government also realized that this school was located in a very disadvantageous location, both low-lying and close to a ravine. Heavy rains are very susceptible to flash floods, not ensuring the safety of teachers and students. The commune also surveyed and selected a location that is both safer and closer to the commune center, convenient for parents to travel when picking up their children as well as teachers to school. Parents, teachers as well as the local Party Committee and government hope to be supported to move the school to a location near the center of the People's Committee of the commune. This location is safer because it is on high ground.

Furthermore, when the school is located in the center of Luong Minh commune, it will be convenient for hundreds of students and their parents to travel to school every day. Especially for children from lowland villages far from the school who have to go by boat, ferry up the river, up the mountain to get to school, such as Ca Moong and Xop Chao villages...

“But the locality is still poor, the district is still facing difficulties, so we really need help from the province, the central government and support from philanthropists,” Mr. Vi Dinh Phuc emphasized.

Discussing the wishes of the people as well as the leaders of the People's Committee of Luong Minh commune about the relocation of the Luong Minh Primary Boarding School, Mr. Lo Thanh Nhat - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Tuong Duong district said that the district leaders also realized that the Luong Minh Primary Boarding School currently has many shortcomings such as low-lying areas, near streams that are prone to flooding. However, to move the school to another location requires a large amount of resources, while the district is still facing difficulties, so it cannot be resolved in the near future, but must be included in the long-term public investment plan, or other sources of support from the community.