Traffic roads and irrigation canals in Thanh Chuong devastated after historic flood

Thanh Tung is the flood center of Thanh Chuong district. During the recent historic flood, the whole commune was submerged and completely isolated. The flood receded, leaving behind devastated structures. Nearly a month after the flood receded, the inter-village road in hamlet 1 is still seriously eroded. Photo: Quang An

On this road, pieces of rock, soil, and concrete have collapsed onto the fields next to it. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Not only roads, irrigation canal systems were also destroyed by floods. In the photo, the Dong Lac irrigation canal system serving agricultural production was cut into pieces by floodwaters, lying haphazardly under the fields, devastated as if after a bomb attack. Thanh Tung commune leaders said that this irrigation canal system was invested in and built with funds from Program 135, just completed in 2019, and is now considered wiped out. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Mr. Phan Van Dung - Chairman of Thanh Tung Commune People's Committee is worried: The damage to the locality after the historic flood caused by the recent storm No. 9 is very large. In addition to people's property and crops, the infrastructure was severely damaged by floodwaters. After the water receded, the locality organized environmental sanitation and returned to a stable life. The biggest concern now is that the infrastructure, roads, and irrigation ditches are damaged and cannot be repaired because the cost is too high while Thanh Tung is a difficult commune. "The spring crop is coming, the irrigation system is damaged, the commune does not know how to manage to have water for production", said Mr. Phan Van Dung. Photo: Quang An

Statistics from the district's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development show that during the recent flood, the entire district had more than 57 km of roads eroded, with a total volume of landslides of over 15,000 m3; 15 bridges were washed away and damaged; 139 culverts were washed away; nearly 10,000 m of canals were eroded; 44 low-voltage power poles were broken, and 9 pumping stations were flooded and damaged. The estimated damage was 75 billion VND. Of which, Thanh Tung commune is considered the most severely damaged locality. Photo: Xuan Hoang

Mr. Trinh Van Nha - Chairman of Thanh Chuong District People's Committee said: Immediately after the water receded, the district conducted inspections and reviews to obtain specific information about the damage, in order to have a plan to handle it immediately after the flood. Regarding infrastructure, the district has directed localities to immediately repair traffic to ensure people's travel. Regarding irrigation systems and bridges serving irrigation, due to the severe damage, the district will have solutions to support localities to repair. The district's viewpoint is to prioritize resources to focus on repairing the traffic system and internal irrigation systems to serve the upcoming winter crop production. The district will have a specific report to the province and the Central Government to request support to repair damaged infrastructure caused by the recent flood, because the district's budget cannot meet the demand. Photo: Quang An