Flood-proof huts of Nghe An people

Low cost, high efficiency

Chau Nhan Commune, Hung Nguyen District has about 50% of households living outside Ta Lam dike, which were households in the old Hung Nhan Commune before the merger. This is a low-lying area, during the rainy season, water from upstream flows down, causing flood levels to rise.

In the peak flood years such as 1978, 1988, 2002, 2010... water flooded the roofs, people had to carry each other to run to the dike to avoid the flood; assets such as motorbikes, rice, livestock, poultry were lined up on the dike for many days...

However, that was the image of more than ten years ago. In recent years, thanks to the construction of flood shelters, the people of Chau Nhan commune no longer have to run around every rainy season. Instead, they proactively source food, move their assets to higher ground, and are self-sufficient, living in high, safe shelters while waiting for the water to recede.

The family of Ms. Le Thi Thoa in Hamlet 9, Chau Nhan Commune is one of the poor households in the locality that received support to build a stilt house to avoid floods under Decision 716 of the Government. Ms. Thoa said: In 2013, the family received 10 million VND from the State, borrowed 10 million VND from the Policy Bank, together with the money we saved and borrowed from relatives, we were able to build a stilt house to prevent storms. The total cost at that time was about 60 million VND. Since then, the family has never had to move to the dike to avoid floods like before.

According to observation, Mrs. Thoa's hut has a floor area of ​​about 15m2.², the height of the second floor is about 3 meters from the yard. Currently, rice, electrical equipment, etc. have been stacked to ensure they are dry and free of mold.

“Over the past few days, following the storm situation in the North, I have been worried, so my family has proactively brought food and electrical equipment to the second floor early, especially during the current rainy and windy season as well as when water from upstream is pouring in,” Ms. Thoa shared.

Mr. Pham Van Hoan's family in Phu Xuan hamlet is also one of the earliest households to have a stilt house in the locality. Mr. Hoan said: My family received support from the State to build a flood-proof stilt house. The house consists of two rooms, upper and lower, with stairs leading up to the side of the house. If people normally live in the lower room, when the storm season comes, all the furniture is transported to the upper room, living there until the storm passes and the water recedes. Thanks to that, the family's life and property have been guaranteed over the years.

Need to be replicated

The program is implemented in the form of State support, community assistance, and household contributions to build flood shelters with floors 1.5 - 3.6m higher than the flood level at the construction site, with a minimum flood-proof floor construction area of ​​10m2.²; main structures such as foundation, frame, floor are equivalent to the structure of a solidly built house; minimum construction cost is 30 million VND/flood shelter.

In Nghe An, there are 2 localities supported by the State according to this decision: Hung Nhan commune (Hung Nguyen) and Nam Cuong commune (Nam Dan), now Chau Nhan commune and Trung Phuc Cuong commune after the merger, with over 100 stilt houses built.

Mr. Phan Dinh Hoan - Vice Chairman of Chau Nhan Commune People's Committee said: The policy of supporting the construction of flood-proof huts for people in the flood-prone areas of Chau Nhan Commune has proven effective over the years. The huts have not too high construction costs, and are supported by State policies and preferential loans, so they are easy to implement locally. Each hut costs only 30 - 70 million VND to build, suitable for the majority of rural people's incomes.

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“Since having the flood shelters, people feel more secure during the storm season, stabilize their lives, production, and escape poverty. Currently, people's lives are improving, the number of children working abroad is increasing, so there are conditions to build more solid high-rise buildings, drawing inspiration from this practical support program. In addition to the flood shelter system, Chau Nhan commune is also supported to build community flood shelters, ensuring safe evacuation of people during the storm season.”

Mr. Phan Dinh Hoan - Vice Chairman of Chau Nhan Commune People's Committee

Mr. Nguyen An Toan - Chairman of Trung Phuc Cuong Commune People's Committee, Nam Dan said: Nam Cuong Commune was previously supported to build flood shelters for 74 households. Although the construction cost at that time was not too high, up to now, after more than 10 years of use, the shelters are still effective in ensuring people's lives and property during the rainy and stormy season. People have also proactively repaired and renovated items that have deteriorated over time. This is a very practical policy, especially for households in difficult circumstances in flood-prone areas and needs to be expanded in the coming time.

Information from the Department of Housing Management and Real Estate Market, Nghe An Department of Construction said: In fact, the demand for disaster-proof houses for poor households in the province is still very large.

According to statistics, the province currently has 2,322 poor households in need of support to build houses to prevent floods and storms. Of these, 936 households need to build new houses and 1,386 households need to repair and renovate their houses. To date, the Ministry of Construction has developed a policy to support poor households in building houses to prevent floods and storms according to the multidimensional poverty standards for the period 2021 - 2025 to submit to the Prime Minister for approval. If approved, more poor households will be supported to build houses to prevent floods and storms and natural disasters in the coming period.