Electricity comes, many new things come with it...

(Baonghean) - "Electricity has arrived, and many new things will follow" - That is the common thought of Thai and Kinh people in Bua village, Xom Moi village and Toong 2 village, Chau Phong commune (Quy Chau).

"Innovation" in Xom Moi

This weekend morning, the Xom Moi village (Chau Phong commune, Quy Chau) seemed busier than usual. The red flag with yellow star from the day the grid was brought in was still hanging in front of every house in this most crowded small village in the highlands. We stopped at a small shop at the beginning of the village. Each person contributed a funny story, all revolving around the grid coming to the village. Some people said that from now on, the village will be more civilized. Others, more realistically, shared: For a long time, everyone in the family has liked to drink ice water and eat ice cream, but they have to go to the market to get it. With the national electricity coming in, tomorrow we have to "buy" a refrigerator for the whole family to drink ice water and eat ice cream to satisfy their cravings.

Ms. Tran Thi Lan's gas station in Chau Phong commune (Quy Chau) no longer needs a generator.

The people of Xom Moi village said that on the night of the inauguration of the transformer station and the power connection in the village, almost no one slept. People visited each other's houses as if they were going out to celebrate Tet. They opened rice wine together to celebrate the national power source. So from now on, people can say goodbye to the mini generator that runs on spring water, which is not only unsafe, but also has an unstable power source.

Another person added to the joke that he was still not used to the new rhythm of life with electricity. He woke up in the middle of the night and still searched for a flashlight, as he had done for many years. When his wife flipped the switch and the whole house was lit up, he suddenly remembered that his house had electricity and no longer needed a flashlight.

At 44 years old, with nearly 10 years of her life working as a grocery and noodle seller, Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan Anh is probably the happiest person of all. She said that since starting her business, she has mainly relied on self-generated electricity from spring water. Every day, she has to order ice from Quy Chau Town, 25 km away. When the grid electricity came, she immediately bought an ice-powered refrigerator. So from now on, she does not have to worry about waiting for ice from trucks from the district town. Her plan is to use the national grid to expand her business.

Not far away is the commune's gas station. The owner of the gas station, Ms. Tran Thi Lan, said that the station has been operating for 6 years now, serving the fuel needs of people in neighboring villages. Before the national grid, each time they pumped gas, they had to use a generator to generate electricity. Customers in the area seem to have formed a habit of driving their motorbikes to the gas station every morning. They often have to wait in large numbers, then the gas station owner starts the pumps all at once to avoid having to turn them off multiple times. Ms. Lan said that from now on, she will not use the generator anymore, she will save money on fuel and it will be less "complicated" to ask customers to wait to pump gas.

20 years of "thirst" for electricity

We went to Toong 2 village, Mr. Vi Van Nghia, the village deputy, said that there are 86 households in the village with a population of over 300 people. Currently, 100% of the households have electricity. No matter how difficult the economy is, people still try to use the electricity grid. There was even an old woman who composed a song: "This old woman will live until the car carrying goods into the village has a lamp that does not need to be filled with oil. The road for cars has been in the village for a long time, but the light bulb that does not need to be filled with oil still lights up, that old woman could not wait." These desires seem so simple, but they have existed for 20 years since Quy Chau district started using the national electricity grid.

Deputy Nghia smiled: "Today I want to reward myself with a day off to sit comfortably by the TV and watch TV shows." Previously, Mr. Nghia's family also bought a turbine that generates electricity using spring water, but the power source was both weak and unstable. When watching TV, they stopped turning on the light. When they needed light to eat, they had to turn off the TV. That's why he rarely watched a good movie or a favorite TV show. And almost every year, Mr. Nghia had to replace the TV. There were countless broken sockets, electric fans, and phone chargers. The spring water power source, sometimes weak, sometimes strong, was the cause of many electrical fires.

Right next to the main road is the shop of Ms. Ha Thi Thi, a grocery store owner in Toong 2 village. She boasts that her family has just bought an ice cream refrigerator. Meanwhile, little girl Lo Thi Yen has been busy working on her electric sewing machine since morning. She has been learning sewing for 3 months now and is quite skilled at the craft. Yen said that after she has mastered the craft, she will return to the village to open a tailor shop. With the electricity grid, young people like Yen in the village will have more opportunities to create their own jobs.

Unfulfilled wishes

However, joy has not yet reached all the villages in the mountainous commune of Chau Phong. Out of 19 villages in the commune, only 3 have access to the grid. Other villages are still waiting for the national power source. It is said that from now until the end of 2015, the Electricity Department will continue to bring electricity to 2 more villages. Thus, most of the villages in the mountainous commune of Chau Phong still do not know when they will have grid electricity.

On the way to Chau Hoan and Dien Lam, these areas currently have no villages with electricity, everywhere we heard the hope that the grid will come. Student Lo Thi Hao in Nat Tren village, Chau Hoan commune confided to us: I heard that in Chau Phong commune, the students there are already studying under bright electric light, I also hope that electricity will soon come to the village so that the study lamps will be brighter.

That is also the wish of students who are staying at local houses in Na Ba village, Chau Hoan commune. Households with students staying at local houses have to share the weak and unstable electricity and water sources with them. Mr. Quang Van Thanh, a household with 10 students staying at home, said: If the grid electricity comes back, the students' study life will be much less difficult.

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