Power outage after storm No. 5, Nghe An had to run generators to drain the water

On the morning of August 25, at Dien Thuy sluice gate (Dien Chau commune), workers had to operate the sluice gate with a 19kW generator. Mr. Nguyen Duc Hanh - Director of Dien Chau Irrigation Enterprise said: "Dien Thuy sluice gate is part of the interconnected system including Dien Thanh sluice gate and Dien Ky spillway, with the task of draining water for the Vach Nam drainage canal system, and releasing floodwaters into the Bung river. From 2:00 p.m. on August 25, the area completely lost power, so we had to switch to using generators to operate the 3 sluice gates. Each gate is 8 meters long, currently discharging floodwaters at a flow rate of about 300 m³/s".

In addition, workers also had to actively remove the dense water hyacinth at the sluice gate to avoid blockages and ensure smooth flow.

At Dien Thanh drainage culvert, one of the key irrigation projects in the northern part of the province, the situation is not any better. According to Mr. Vo Van Thang - Head of Dien Thanh drainage culvert station, due to power outage, the unit had to mobilize a 75kW generator to operate 3 sluice gates, each 19 meters long, with a total discharge flow of up to 623 m³/s.

“Dien Thanh drainage culvert plays a particularly important role, responsible for draining water for more than 20,000 hectares of rice fields and residential areas in the two old districts of Yen Thanh and Dien Chau. Previously, this culvert often degraded and could not drain in time when there was heavy rain. However, since 2019, thanks to a support project from JICA (Japan), the system has been rebuilt with a modern electronic control mechanism. Unfortunately, this time there was a power outage, so we had to go back to the backup plan with a generator to operate the culvert,” Mr. Thang shared.

Not only at Dien Thanh sluice, other drainage systems are also operating at full capacity to cope with flooding. At Nghi Quang sluice (Hai Loc commune), Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tuan - Head of the Station said: "This is the largest flood drainage sluice in the irrigation system in the South of Nghe An, responsible for draining water for the old districts of Nghi Loc, Hung Nguyen, Vinh city and part of Nam Dan district. Currently, we are operating 13 sluice gates with 20kW generators to maintain a discharge flow of more than 400 m³/s".

Mr. Tuan also noted that the operation of the sluice gate must closely monitor the tide level. “If the water level in the river is higher than in the fields, we must immediately close the gate to avoid saltwater overflowing, causing further damage to agricultural production,” he said.

At the Ben Thuy sluice gate - an important flood discharge point, workers are also opening 10 gates simultaneously, with a total discharge capacity of about 265 m³/s. Although the working atmosphere is urgent, due to power outages and continuous heavy rain, the operating units have to work in extremely difficult conditions.

According to the representative of Nghe An Irrigation Department, the whole province currently has nearly 20 large and small drainage systems such as Nghi Quang, Ben Thuy, Thuong Xa, Nghi Xa, Dien Thanh, Dien Thuy... However, currently only Dien Thanh sluice has been upgraded and modernized. Most of the remaining works have degraded, causing many difficulties in operation, especially in the current conditions of power outages and prolonged storms.

The Department is directing local irrigation units to be on duty 24/7, closely following the actual situation, releasing water according to the motto "clearing the tide, draining the flood". At the same time, it is necessary to closely monitor the water level and hydrological situation, ensuring that the discharge process does not let salt water intrude into the fields.

For flood control works to operate effectively, it is necessary not only to focus on flexible operation during the flood season but also to consider long-term solutions. In particular, Nghe An needs to upgrade its degraded and outdated flood control systems to meet the increasingly high demand for flood control in the context of complex climate change. At the same time, it is necessary to ensure a stable power source for the entire key irrigation system, limit dependence on temporary generators as at present, avoid passivity in operation, minimize damage to agricultural production and people's lives.