Floods destroy homes, roads in border province

By Le Hoang, Thanh Liem   September 3, 2018 | 05:58 am PT
Heavy downpours have completely wrecked many houses and buildings in Muong Lat District, Thanh Hoa Province. 
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After five days of having no network connection, local reporters have been able to provide firsthand images of the damage left behind by floods in the central province of Thanh Hoa. The photo shows a secondary school in the Tam Chung commune damaged by the flood.

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Dozens of houses where poor ethnic minority people lived were damaged or washed away.

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With the floods giving no warning, residents could barely escape with their lives, and could not save their belongings. “There was only enough time for people to run to higher ground,” said Liem, an official with the Muong Lat People’s Committee, referring to the floods that hit the border district last Thursday.

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Liem and his colleagues had to walk 7-8 hours in the forest to reach some of the residents. “There is no phone connection and electricity. I don’t know when that will be fixed,” Liem said.

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The downpour triggered landslides, burying houses and bridges. The photo shows a resident’s truck partly submerged in the dirt.

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A group of people sitting in a house that almost collapsed, look at the damage around them.

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The Tam Chung Primary School was heavily damaged, just days before the start of a new school year.

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A man in the Ten Tan commune injured during work had to be carried through the forest to the hospital because the main roads were flooded. 

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Landslides have damaged roads in the region, separating Muong Lat Town and most nearby communes, said Cao Van Cuong, chairman of the town. Local authorities have sent dozens of excavators to clear the road but are finding it very difficult to do their job. 

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A 40km stretch of the 15C Highway was heavily damaged, with some parts completely washed away.

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Four people have died and three are missing in Muong Lat after the floods hit the border district. The total damage caused has not been estimated. 

As of Saturday, the flash floods in Thanh Hoa had left six people dead and seven others missing. Three suspension bridges had been washed away, 120 houses collapsed  and the houses of nearly 4,600 families were inundated.

Locals have blamed their plight on the heavy downpours and water discharged by local hydropower dams. 

 
 
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