Resettlement site to evacuate people from landslide area... landslides again

Projectresettlement area construction (TDC)) to arrange emergency accommodation for households affected by floods and landslides in Minh Phuong village, Xop Mat village, Luong Minh commune (Tuong Duong) in the downstream area of ​​Ban Ve Hydropower Plant invested by Tuong Duong District People's Committee with a total approved budget of 7,354 billion VND, implementation time of 5 months.

Some households have drawn lots for plots of land and built house frames but do not dare to build them for fear of landslides. Photo: Tien Dong

At this time, 17 households were supposed to be relocated to new housing, however, due to large cracks appearing at the resettlement site, construction had to be stopped. This caused 17 households who were already living in temporary tents built along the river.Nam Non Riverhave to wait again.

Mrs. Thu's family is having to set up a temporary tent to live by the Nam Non River. Photo: Tien Dong

Ms. Lo Thi Thu's family, with 6 members, used to live in the area near Xop Mat suspension bridge. After the flood in August 2018, her family's house was severely eroded, forcing them to urgently relocate to the area along Provincial Road 534B located on the Nam Non River. Up to this point, it has been nearly 4 Tet holidays but her family has not yet been able to move to the new resettlement site. Ms. Thu was sad, "We were supposed to move in 2020, but we heard that there was a landslide so no one dared to go."

People have built houses and roofed them, but due to fear of landslides, they had to temporarily stop. Photo: Tien Dong

Mr. Luc Van Thang's family of four is also living in a makeshift situation on the slope of the Nam Non River. Although living next to the river is very dangerous every time the rainy season comes, Mr. Thang has no other choice. "It's better to live low than to go up high and worry about landslides" - Mr. Thang sighed. Mr. Thang's family even drew lots for a plot of land and temporarily built a house frame on the resettlement site, but he did not dare to go up because he was afraid of landslides.

Mr. Vi Dinh Phuc - Chairman of the Commune People's CommitteeLuong Minhsaid: Currently, households are scattered along the Nam Non River, some households are staying at relatives' houses. Some households even proposed that the commune allow them to build houses along the river, but the river and stream banks are also areas with high risk of landslides, making it impossible to build houses.

We asked whether it was possible to choose another location to build the resettlement site, Mr. Phuc affirmed that it was very difficult, it was said to be a mountainous area with large land but in reality this was a high mountain with a large slope, so it was very difficult to choose a suitable location.

In this resettlement area, only Mr. Lo Van Tao's family has finished building a house but had to close the door and did not dare to stay there, but instead temporarily lived in the Ho slope area not far away. Photo: Tien Dong

According to our observations, the project to build an emergency resettlement site for households in Xop Mat and Minh Phuong villages has completed the construction of the access roads, the embankment system of the negative and positive slopes. One household, Mr. Vi Van Tao, has finished building a house but does not dare to live there, so he has to temporarily live in the area of ​​Ho slope not far away.

Currently, at this resettlement site, the slope from the top of the mountain has slid down, and many large cracks have appeared. This is the reason why people do not dare to move up to live, and even the local government has not arranged for households to build houses but is waiting for a repair plan until ensuring sustainable safety before moving people up.

It is known that the total approved budget for the construction of this resettlement site is 7.354 billion VND, however, up to now, according to records, only 2.498 billion VND has been allocated. Not to mention the landslides and large cracks at the top of the resettlement site, which may increase the repair costs. The worst case scenario is that this resettlement site may have to be canceled.

The slope of the resettlement area has slid down, causing the stone embankment to crack. Photo: Tien Dong

Mr. Nguyen Trung Son - Director of the Tuong Duong District Construction Investment Project Management Board said: Although the project implementation time is 5 months from the start date, due to difficult terrain and heavy rain, the construction solution is affected, slowing down the progress. In September and October 2020, the district was continuously affected by storms No. 5, No. 7 and No. 9, causing many heavy rains to appear at the resettlement site, causing large cracks with a high risk of landslides. Currently, the district is continuing to monitor the development of cracks and landslides, waiting for a stable time to propose a repair plan, and only when it is completed and there is no more danger will people be brought up./.