Urgently strengthen the command committee for natural disaster prevention and control in new wards and communes.

Quickly strengthen the command board for natural disaster prevention and control

The transition to a two-tier local government model in Nghe An from July 1, 2025 requires not only the improvement of administrative organization and personnel, but also proactive response to natural disasters at the grassroots level. In particular, the improvement of the command board for natural disaster prevention, control, search and rescue and civil defense (PCTT-TKCN&PTDS Command Board) is identified as one of the key tasks that need to be implemented first.

Chau Binh commune is one of the localities that proactively and promptly completed the reorganization of the command board right after implementing the new government model. In 2023, Chau Binh commune was one of the localities that suffered the most damage in the historic flood in Quy Chau district (old). “Lessons from previous years are still valuable. We determined that we must act early, reorganize the command board to promptly plan and direct the review of areas at risk of flooding and landslides. Only then can we proactively respond and minimize damage,” affirmed Mr. Lo Van The - Chairman of Chau Binh Commune People's Committee.

According to the decision to reorganize, the commune command board consists of 5 heads and deputy heads; 10 comrades from the standing office and 17 official members from specialized departments and offices; at the same time, 14 more comrades representing units stationed in the area were invited to participate. This structure is not only broad in composition but also ensures effective coordination in implementing the "4 on-site" tasks: on-site command, on-site forces, on-site means and on-site logistics.

Truong Vinh Ward is one of the newly merged localities with the largest scale in the province with an area of ​​34.22 km² and a population of about 141,500 people. As soon as the ward officially operates, the work of perfecting the Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control and Search and Rescue is identified as a priority task.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Phong - Vice Chairman of the Ward People's Committee said: "There are many areas in the area that have been flooded and eroded during storms and floods such as Vinh Tan, Ben Thuy, Hung Hoa, Trung Do (old). Therefore, reorganizing the command apparatus for natural disaster prevention and control is vital in managing and responding to extreme weather risks."

It is known that the ward command board is strengthened with the Chairman of the Ward People's Committee as the Head of the Board, along with Deputy Heads in charge of professional fields such as rescue, health, security, order, culture, society, etc. The Economic - Infrastructure and Urban Department is assigned as the standing agency to respond to natural disasters, while the Police and the Ward Military Command are the standing forces for rescue and relief. In particular, the Command Board also invites organizations, unions and heads of residential blocks to participate, in order to build a national posture in preventing and fighting natural disasters.

Notably, on July 7, just a few days after Truong Vinh ward came into operation, a working delegation of the Party Committee and the People's Committee of the ward led by comrade Phan Duc Dong - Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Party Secretary, Chairman of the People's Council of Truong Vinh ward directly inspected the current status of key points in the area. After grasping the actual situation, comrade Phan Duc Dong requested the Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control, Search and Rescue and Disaster Prevention of the ward to immediately deploy specific solutions for each area, especially those at high risk of flooding and landslides. At the same time, he directed specialized agencies to develop plans to ensure human resources, means, logistics and proactively inform the people.

However, not all localities have had favorable conditions for the establishment of a command board for natural disaster prevention and control. For example, in Huu Khuong commune (formerly Tuong Duong district), the establishment of the board is still facing difficulties due to geographical characteristics and lack of human resources.

Ready to respond to storms

In early July 2025, prolonged heavy rains in the mountainous areas of Nghe An caused serious damage in many communes. For example, in Tam Thai commune (formerly Tuong Duong district), rain from the afternoon of July 6 to the morning of July 7 caused the Public Administration Service Center to be deeply flooded, many inter-village roads were cut off due to rising water at the Khoi and Xoong Con village spillways, and commune officials had to stay on duty all night to protect assets, machinery and equipment at the agency headquarters.

Or in Chieu Luu commune (former Ky Son district), rain from the night of July 5 to 6 caused many landslides, traffic jams, directly affecting the lives of 5 households in Xieng Thu, Luu Thang and Luu Tien villages...

This development shows that, although it has not officially entered the peak of the storm season, Nghe An is facing more unusual and complex natural disasters than before.

In such a situation, the role of the PCTT-TKCN&PTDS Command Board becomes even more crucial. Not only is it the unit coordinating rapid response on-site, the command board is also responsible for directing evacuation, rescue, on-duty, warning information, and coordinating forces to overcome the consequences.

Faced with the above situation, on July 4, 2025, the Standing Office of the Provincial Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and Disaster Relief issued Official Dispatch No. 100/VP-PCTT requesting localities to "Urgently consolidate, establish and reorganize the apparatus of the Commune-level Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and Disaster Relief; at the same time, establish disaster prevention and control shock teams to ensure good operation of the "4 on-site" motto in all situations".

Through the discussion, Mr. Nguyen Truong Thanh - Head of the Irrigation Sub-Department, Chief of Office of the Provincial Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and Disaster Prevention said: After operating the 2-level local government, the Commune-level Steering Committee is the first force, has the closest grasp of reality and is capable of responding the fastest in all natural disaster situations.

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“Currently, the unit is directing and urging the new communes and wards to soon complete the consolidation work, send the list to the Provincial Command Office so that the unit can promptly grasp, monitor as well as have plans to direct and coordinate to be ready to respond to natural disasters in the coming time...”.

Mr. Nguyen Truong Thanh - Head of Irrigation Sub-Department, Chief of Office of Provincial Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention, Search and Rescue and Disaster Prevention