Danger lurks from the quarry next to Highway 1 in Hoang Mai town

Blocking National Highway 1A to blast rocks

For many years, the family of Mrs. Vu Thi Hoa (70 years old, Tan Thanh block, Quynh Thien ward, Hoang Mai town) has always been worried every time the Hoang Mai B limestone mine conducts blasting to exploit stone. During the blasting time, which usually lasts for many hours at noon and in the evening, Mrs. Hoa and many other households do not dare to leave their houses for fear of rocks falling on their heads.

“I spent many years in the army, and I was used to fighting with bombs and bullets. Now my house is near the quarry, it’s no different from the wartime. Every time a mine explodes, the house shakes and rocks fly everywhere,” said Ms. Hoa, adding that this situation has lasted for many years. People have sent complaints to the local authorities many times but have not been resolved.

Pointing to the cracks that run along the flat-roofed house next to Highway 1A, Ms. Hoa said the cause was from rock blasting. Now, every time it rains, water flows from the cracks all over the house. “Almost every year, rocks fly into my house. Recently, after the blast, rocks flew down and punctured the corrugated iron roof. Once, rocks flew and shattered the storage cabinet in front of the house,” Ms. Hoa said.

After each loss, Ms. Hoa's family also reported to the quarry owner to request compensation as well as to fix the situation of blasting rocks into people's houses. The quarry then sent people to repair the house, damaged items and supported a small amount of money for the people, but the above situation was still not fixed.

There were times when the quarry came and fixed the damage, and when the roof was punctured, they brought the roof to replace it. There were also times when they came to inspect and gave us a few hundred thousand. Since the beginning of the year, my family has received about 3 million VND in compensation from the quarry for the damage caused by the blasting. But the problem is not the compensation, but the need to stop this situation immediately. If flying rocks damage houses, it can be fixed, but what if they kill people?

Mrs. Vu Thi Hoa (Tan Thanh block, Quynh Thien ward, Hoang Mai town)

Not far from Ms. Hoa's house, a woman who asked to remain anonymous said that there are many quarries in operation around this area, but the quarry of Hoang Mai Stone Joint Stock Company is the closest. "Almost all the houses near National Highway 1A here have cracks or have had their corrugated iron roofs punctured by flying rocks. Last year, my house had a wall punctured by rocks, and the quarry sent someone to patch it up with cement. Everyone here is upset, we have complained to the authorities many times but have not seen any solutions. Once, when we saw flying rocks damaging our house, we recorded a video and broadcast it live on social media, but the commune officials called us down and asked us to take it down," this person said.

According to the reporter's records, this limestone quarry is located next to National Highway 1A. The distance from the quarry to the residential area is about 200m. Next to National Highway 1A, closest to the quarry is the North-South railway line. On the mountain, many large rocks that were thrown out after the blasting are still lying precariously, waiting to roll down the railway line. Not only do rocks fall on residential areas, but each time a mine explodes, rocks often fall on the surface of National Highway 1A, posing a danger to passersby. Therefore, when it is time to detonate the mine, the company sends people to block vehicles on National Highway 1A passing through this area to ensure safety.

The most recent time, on November 8, after the blast, many large and small stones were scattered all over the highway. Some were more than 20 cm in diameter. Many of them even hit and damaged the guardrails on the side of the road. Because before the blast, the company had people block Highway 1A through this area, there was no damage to people or vehicles.

“We have complained to the company many times, but the company has not cooperated. The quarrying not only affects the environment because of the dust but also scatters rocks everywhere, endangering road users,” said an officer in charge of National Highway 1A section passing through this area.

According to this person, recently the mining company has been operating at full speed day and night. Not only did the blasts cause rocks to fly onto Highway 1A, but the trucks carrying rocks from the quarry were also dumped in overflowing tanks, so when they reached the highway, rocks were scattered all over the road. The road management unit had to assign staff to regularly clean up the rocks to ensure safety for road users.

Failure to comply with the request of the Provincial People's Committee

According to the reporter's investigation, this quarry belongs to Hoang Mai Stone Joint Stock Company. It was granted a mining license in 1995, with a reserve of 11 million tons, and an exploitation period until October 2025. In April 2021, the People's Committee of Nghe An province repeatedly issued documents requesting the company to move the stone crushing station and raw materials, railway sleepers out of the 10m range from the railway corridor before May 15, 2021. But the company did not comply. In February 2022, the People's Committee of Hoang Mai town continued to issue a document requesting the company to relocate the stone crushing station before March 30, 2022.

Recently, in July 2023, in a report sent to the Management Board of the Southeast Economic Zone regarding the impact of this quarry, the leader of the People's Committee of Hoang Mai town said that up to now, the relocation of stone grinding works to create a corridor along the railway and National Highway 1A to ensure the landscape of this area as required by the Provincial People's Committee has not been carried out.

In addition, the leader of Hoang Mai Town People's Committee also said that in the past time, through inspection work and according to people's feedback, the mineral exploitation activities of Hoang Mai Stone Joint Stock Company still have some problems such as: Exploitation is not in accordance with the design approved by competent authorities; there are still potential labor safety risks in exploitation; there are some dangerous hanging stone mounds that pose a risk of causing safety risks; during the exploitation, production and transportation process, dust is also emitted, affecting the environment; blasting at some times causes rocks to fly onto the railway and National Highway 1A.

“People in Tan Thanh and Tan Hung blocks, Quynh Thien ward, reported that at some times the sound of mine explosions and the vibrations when mines were detonated were still loud. Currently, mining activities, transportation of materials and products in the mine area; and the operation of stone crushing equipment in the production area cause dust and noise, causing loss of beauty in the National Highway 1A area, the northern gateway area of ​​the province and Hoang Mai Industrial Park 1”, the report of Hoang Mai town People's Committee stated.

To accurately determine whether blasting, transporting, breaking, crushing, etc. activities cause noise, vibration, dust, etc. exceeding the permitted standards, there must be measuring machines and equipment performed by competent units. Hoang Mai Town People's Committee has requested competent authorities to direct specialized units with the function of determining noise, vibration, dust standards, etc. in mineral activities of this quarry. At the same time, it is requested that competent authorities not continue to extend (or grant new operating licenses) in this quarry area so as not to affect the people, National Highway 1A and Hoang Mai Industrial Park I.

To clarify the people's complaints, the reporter visited the headquarters many times and called Mr. Nguyen Ba Binh - Chairman of the People's Committee of Quynh Thien Ward to work but was unsuccessful. Meanwhile, Mr. Nguyen Duy Anh - Director of Hoang Mai Stone Joint Stock Company also did not answer the phone.