Nghe An: Severe drought, fields cracked open

Quang An - Van Truong• June 23, 2020 10:19

(Baonghean.vn) - Prolonged heat has caused many fields in Hung Nguyen and Do Luong districts (Nghe An) to dry up and crack, and many areas of summer-autumn rice have withered...

Drought in Hung Nguyen district. Clip: Quang An

These days, when visiting the northern communes of Hung Nguyen district such as Hung Tay, Hung Yen Bac, Hung Yen Nam... one cannot help but be haunted by the barren, cracked summer-autumn rice fields. In the photo: The fields in Hung Tay commune (Hung Nguyen) are severely drought-stricken, the young rice is dry and withered due to lack of water. Photo: Quang An

Hung Yen Bac commune - the drought epicenter of Hung Nguyen district is no exception. The rice fields are cracked in large furrows, white and many seeds cannot grow when sown, so the fields are sparse and barren. According to statistics, the whole Hung Yen Bac commune has 260 hectares of summer-autumn rice, however, over 150 hectares are severely drought-affected, of which 100 hectares will be completely lost if there is no rain in the next week. Photo: Quang An

Mr. Nguyen Dinh Huu - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Hung Yen Bac commune said: This is the longest and most severe drought in the commune. All three main water sources for production, Khe Ngang dam, Giap Lang pumping station and Cau Ban pumping station, cannot provide enough water for production. It is worth mentioning that the rice is in the stage of pruning and fertilizing but is facing a severe drought and will have difficulty growing if the weather continues to be hot and dry. Photo: Quang An

Hệ thống kênh mương điều tiết nước cũng cạn trơ đáy. Ảnh: Quang An

The water regulation canal system is also dry. Photo: Quang An

Nhiều cánh đồng sau khi thu hoạch lúa xuân nhưng không có nước để cày bừa nên đành bỏ không vì không thể gieo cấy vụ hè thu. Ảnh: Quang An

Many fields after the spring rice harvest but without water for plowing, had to be left fallow because they could not plant the summer-autumn crop. Photo: Quang An

Mr. Nguyen Tu Truong in hamlet 2, Hung Yen Bac commune, every day braves the sun to carry a pump to each ditch to "dredging water" to save the rice, however, he can only temporarily save about 1 sao, the remaining 4 sao of the family have to wait for rain. Photo: Quang An

The amount of dredged water is nothing under the scorching sun. Photo: Quang An

According to statistics from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hung Nguyen district, the whole district currently has about 1,000 hectares of summer-autumn rice suffering from severe drought. If there is no rain in the next 10 days, this area will be at risk of being completely lost. In the photo: Hung Yen Nam commune mobilizes the commune's pumps and rents additional pumps from local people to save the drought-affected rice. Photo: Quang An

In Do Luong district, the drought is equally severe. In Dai Son commune, 16 lakes and dams, large and small, have all run dry. In the photo: Cay Thi reservoir in Dai Son commune (Do Luong) has dried up. Photo: Van Truong

In the entire Dai Son commune (Do Luong), there are 392 hectares of rice, of which over 220 hectares are affected by drought, many areas cannot be planted yet. Mrs. Tran Thi Van in hamlet 2, Dai Son commune (Do Luong) said: All are "dry fields, white soil", her family has 4 sao of rice but the drought cannot grow, so they have to leave it fallow, this season will "hang up the pot". Photo: Van Truong

Cracked rice fields. Photo: Van Truong

Corn fields in Thuong Son commune (Do Luong) have yellow leaves due to lack of water. Photo: Van Truong

Mr. Tran Ngoc Thuan - Head of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Do Luong district said: Do Luong has over 100 large and small reservoirs, accounting for 80% of the reservoirs managed by the locality that are now running out of water, concentrated in the communes of Giang Son Dong, Giang Son Tay, Hong Son, My Son, Lam Son, Bai Son... This summer-autumn crop, Do Luong planted over 7,500 hectares of rice, of which about over 2,000 hectares are in the reservoir area. Currently, over 600 hectares of rice in the reservoir area are lacking water, over 300 hectares do not have water to prepare the land. In the photo: Fish ponds of people in Tru Son commune are cracked due to drought. Photo: Van Truong