A household in Nghe An had 5 hectares of watermelons chopped down by thieves who were ready to harvest.

With tears streaming down her face, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh (40 years old), residing in Hamlet 1, Dien Phong Commune, Dien Chau District, told reporters: About 5 sao of watermelon (0.25 ha), only 10-15 days left to harvest, was destroyed by thieves, causing her family to be devastated.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh's 5 acres of watermelons in Hamlet 1, Dien Phong Commune (Dien Chau) were uprooted or cut in half and wilted. Photo: Duc Thanh

Accordingly, at around 5:30 this morning (May 11), while at home, Thanh and her husband were informed by local residents that their family's watermelon field had been vandalized.

Panicked, Ms. Thanh immediately ran to the field and could only cover her face and cry because all the effort she had put into fertilizing and fertilizing was now considered a total loss, as her family's two melon fields (about 200m apart - PV) were uprooted and almost completely cut across.

Ms. Thanh was confused when her watermelons, which were about to be harvested, were destroyed by thieves. Photo: Duc Thanh

“My husband and I work hard all day in the fields taking care of the melons to earn money to raise our three children who are still in school. Sometimes we go to work early in the morning, come home at noon to rest for a while, then go back to the fields until 8-9pm at night to get home. Now it’s almost harvest time, but who would be so cruel to destroy it like that?” - Ms. Thanh said with red eyes.

According to Ms. Thanh, her family has never had any conflicts or disagreements with anyone. So when the melon field was destroyed, not only her family but also many other melon growers were very worried, when the "watermelon barn" of Dien Chau district was nearing harvest time.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoa, a melon grower living in the same neighborhood as Ms. Thanh's family, indignantly shared: "Farmers work hard to take care of melons, just waiting for the harvest day, but now it is being sabotaged by criminals like this, it is so cruel. We hope the matter will be clarified soon so that people can feel secure in their production."

According to the reporter, in the area where the watermelons were destroyed, many trees had produced large fruits. Part of the watermelon field was uprooted by thieves, causing the plants to wither, while another part was cut across the stem and root, causing the plants to wilt and die more quickly.

Ms. Thanh's family sadly hopes that the authorities will clarify the matter. Photo: Duc Thanh

According to local people, this year watermelon prices are good, so they will bring in an income of 10-15 million VND/sao. With 5 sao of destroyed watermelon, Ms. Thanh's family suffered an estimated loss of 50-75 million VND, which is a large sum for a farming family.

Talking to reporters, Mr. Truong Hong Khoi - Chairman of the People's Committee of Dien Phong Commune (Dien Chau) said: "The fact that Ms. Thanh's family had their melon field vandalized by thieves is true. Such an incident has never happened in the locality before. This morning (May 11), the Commune Police coordinated with the Dien Chau District Police to go to the scene to collect initial information for investigation."

Hopefully, with the prompt and urgent intervention of local authorities and functional forces, the case will soon be clarified.

The incident occurred in Dien Phong commune (Dien Chau district). Photo: Google Maps