Dozens of households in Quy Chau live in fear next to the 'river god's mouth'
For many years, dozens of households in Minh Tien village, Chau Tien commune, Quy Chau district have lived in fear on the eroding banks of the Hieu river, facing potential safety risks when flood season comes.
At Minh Tien village, Chau Tien commune, Quy Chau district, dozens of households were found lying precariously on the edge of Hieu river. The riverbank erosion over the past years has caused the riverbank to "eat" close to the village, sweeping away the outbuildings of the houses and losing residential land.
Mr. Duong Van Thanh, in Minh Tien village, Chau Tien commune, worriedly said: My family has lived here for over 30 years, the residential land area of the family has been granted land use rights. Every flood season, I witness the riverbank eroding deep into the village.
My family used to have a garden, but after each flood, the riverbank was encroached 3-4 meters deep, and now the flood has swept away bamboo bushes and trees close to the house. Every flood season, the water level of the Hieu River rises, and the whole family has to take their belongings to evacuate.
According to observations, Mr. Thanh's house has concrete piles built under the riverbank, and below the house he has reinforced a rock bank to protect the concrete pillars, but when the flood reaches the rock bank, it can still be swept away, threatening lives.
Some people in Minh Tien village shared: In recent years, people in Minh Tien village have actively used stone cages, sandbags, planted bamboo, and planted stakes along the Hieu River to protect the village, but to no avail. Every flood season, many bamboo clumps are swept away by the river.
According to observations, local residents proactively use materials and sandbags to surround their houses to minimize landslides during flood season.
The section passing through Chau Tien commune has new landslides after the first rains of the season, with landslides eating into people's cultivated land.
Mr. Sam Thanh Hoai - Chairman of Chau Tien Commune People's Committee said: Along Hieu River, passing through Minh Tien village, there are nearly 42 households living, of which 22 households are directly affected by riverbank erosion. Most of the households living here have lived for over 40 years, most of them have been granted land use right certificates. In addition, there are 6 households that have not been granted land use right certificates but still build houses along the river.
However, households without a "cover" in the commune cannot request to move elsewhere, because they built their houses more than 20 years ago, and the commune does not have land to resettle these households.
During the rainy season, the commune regularly sends forces to check and review households living along the riverbank for landslides and has plans to evacuate when the river water rises. In the long term, the commune is proposing to the authorities to build an embankment along the Hieu River through Minh Tien village to protect people's lives and property.
