Grand memorial service for 98 young men who died at Hiep Hoa culvert
(Baonghean.vn) - On the evening of June 9, the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha of Nghe An province coordinated with the Provincial Youth Union and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to hold a prayer ceremony and light candles to pay tribute to the young men who sacrificed their lives in the cause of building their homeland on January 3, 1978, at the Hiep Hoa sluice irrigation project (Hoa Son commune, Do Luong).
Attending the ceremony were comrades Nguyen Van Thong - Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee; Nguyen Thi Thu Huong - Member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, Secretary of the Party Committee of Provincial Agencies;Dinh Viet Hong - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee andleaders of the Provincial Youth Union, Department of Agriculture and Rural Development; leaders of Do Luong and Thanh Chuong districts...; representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, along with thousands of local people and relatives of the young men who sacrificed 40 years ago.
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| Delegates attending the memorial service. Photo: Tien Hung |
Hiep Hoa culvert is a project in the irrigation canal that carries water from Lam River to provide irrigation and domestic water for 4 downstream districts (Do Luong, Quynh Luu, Yen Thanh, Dien Chau) built by the French in 1934.
At the end of 1977, Nghe Tinh province (old) decided to dredge and repair the Dao river, which is the main river system of Do Luong and expand the Hiep Hoa sluice, which was heavily damaged by American bombs, narrowed the flow, and the water supply was not enough to meet the production and daily needs of the people. In order to have enough water for the spring crop, the province mobilized 21,000 laborers and youth volunteers from 7 districts, along with the support of the 4th Military Region troops, to participate in the renovation of the project within 1 month.
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| Delegates lit incense to pay tribute to the 98 laborers and youth volunteers who sacrificed their lives. Photo: Tien Hung |
However, when the project was almost completed, a heartbreaking accident occurred at noon on January 3, 1978. Thousands of cubic meters of earth and rock suddenly collapsed, killing 98 people and injuring more than 100 others. Tragedy fell over many poor rural areas. The men and women who fell were only sixteen or twenty years old, at the most beautiful age of their lives, with so many dreams and ambitions.
Some people left right after they got accepted to university, some people had just fallen in love at the construction site and promised to return home to get engaged after the project was done, some people were getting ready to get married so they went to the construction site to share the joy and say goodbye to their brothers and friends for the last time...
Speaking at the memorial service, Secretary of the Provincial Youth Union Pham Tuan Vinh said, “You fell down with half-eaten cassava in your hands. The promise to eat the first bowls of white rice of the season after the cool water flows downstream was never fulfilled.”
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| Delegates perform a prayer ceremony. Photo: Tien Hung |
Comrade Pham Tuan Vinh said, "The Hiep Hoa culvert incident" left the Party Committee, people of Nghe Tinh and relatives of those who fell here with endless pain.
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| Hiep Hoa culvert area during the night of prayers for the dead. Photo: Quang Thanh. |
More than 40 years have passed, Hiep Hoa sluice is still there, the cool water still flows day and night, irrigating the fields for more bountiful crops, contributing to creating a prosperous, happy and peaceful life for the homeland.