Residents of Ky Son, a region affected by the historic floods, are about to move to a new resettlement area.
The resettlement area in Son Ha village, Ta Ca commune, Ky Son district (referred to as resettlement area No. 2) has been completed. It is expected that in the first quarter of 2025, the local authorities will relocate households affected by the historic floods of October 2022 to their new homes.
Complete the resettlement area.
Following the historic flash flood in Ta Ca commune (Ky Son district) in early October 2022, hundreds of households in Ta Ca commune and Muong Xen town were severely affected.
Not only have they suffered material losses, but the lives of many households have also been disrupted, and everyone hopes to be able to settle down as soon as possible. The authorities at all levels have immediately focused on planning a new resettlement area for the people.
Accordingly, Ky Son district has planned two resettlement areas, including Resettlement Area No. 1 in Cau Tam village and Resettlement Area No. 2 behind Ky Son High School. Resettlement Area No. 2 consists of 56 residential plots for 56 households, and construction began in November 2023, with the Ky Son District People's Committee as the investor. The project covers an area of 3.9 hectares, with each plot averaging 222 square meters.2Total floor area: 14,222 m²2.
The total investment for the project is 31.5 billion VND, of which 30 billion VND comes from the central government's contingency budget and 1.5 billion VND from the Ky Son district budget. Construction began on November 15, 2023.
According to Mr. Nguyen Van Long, Head of the Investment and Construction Project Management Board of Ky Son District People's Committee, by the end of 2024, resettlement area No. 2 had completed 100% of its infrastructure. Relevant levels and sectors will inspect and hand over the project to proceed with the next steps to relocate the affected households. Currently, in addition to resettlement area No. 2 for the emergency relocation of people from Muong Xen town and Ta Ca commune, Ky Son district is also processing the necessary documents and procedures to build resettlement area No. 1 in Cau Tam village.
Relocate residents to resettlement areas in the first quarter of 2025.
Before the Lunar New Year of the Year of the Snake, we returned to Hoa Son village – the site of the historic flash flood in October 2022. Together with Mr. Vi Van Truyen, the head of Hoa Son village, we met with several households that were relocated following that historic flood.
In his newly rebuilt temporary house, Mr. Vi Van Khuyen said: "My family wasn't among the households severely affected by the flash flood, but we were among those who had to relocate because our house was located in a high-risk landslide area. After the flash flood, the hillside behind our house suffered a severe landslide, forcing us to dismantle our house and move to a temporary residence to ensure our safety and property. A villager lent us a 30-square-meter plot of land."2They built a temporary house, but by mid-2024 the land was taken, forcing the family to dismantle the temporary house and rebuild it on their old land.
“For a long time, a crack hundreds of meters long has appeared on the hill behind our house. It’s fine during the dry season, but the risk of landslides is very high during the rainy season. Therefore, our family hopes that the local authorities will pay attention and arrange for resettlement to stabilize our lives,” Mr. Vi Văn Khuyên expressed.
Arriving in the central area of Hoa Son village, where the historic flash flood devastated the land, although the people have resumed production on the areas buried by mud and rocks, with green vegetable patches, fish ponds, banana trees, etc., the people here are still not at ease, because dozens of households are still living in makeshift houses.
Mr. Lam Van Hoi's family is one of those whose homes were completely swept away by the flood and are now living in a temporary shelter built on another family's land. Mr. Lam Van Hoi hopes that the government will soon create conditions for his family to resettle so they can have a stable life, because every year during the rainy season, when there is heavy and prolonged rain, no one in the family dares to sleep, haunted by the fear of the terrible flood of 2022...
Mr. Vi Van Mann, Chairman of the People's Committee of Ta Ca Commune, said: Ta Ca Commune has four ethnic groups living there, with 1,157 households and 4,590 people. The 2022 flood swept through Son Ha and Hoa Son villages, mainly inhabited by the Thai and Mong ethnic groups. The flood damaged 233 houses, including 56 that were completely swept away, over 140 that were severely damaged, and 36 that required urgent relocation. Following the plan of the District People's Committee, at the beginning of 2025, the commune will conduct a review and assess the actual situation of each household to arrange timely and appropriate resettlement.
Mr. Tho Ba Re, Vice Chairman of the Ky Son District People's Committee, said: "Recently, the District People's Committee issued a document directing localities, including Ta Ca commune and Muong Xen town, to urgently disseminate information, review, and approve the list of households subject to relocation. The district will soon implement the rural electrification program for ethnic minority communities in villages without access to the power grid, ensuring timely electricity supply for housing and daily life," Mr. Tho Ba Re stated.
Thus, after many years of waiting, one of the two resettlement areas for the flood-affected Ky Son district has been completed, meaning that dozens of households who lost their homes in the historic flood now have the opportunity to settle in a new place.
