Several areas in Thanh Hoa have fallen into a state of drought for over a month. Some local rainfalls seem to be of little of help and the forecast is for more severe heat.
Trung, in front of his dying corn field
Without water, vast fields of corn along the road toward Thach Thanh and Ha Trung districts from National Highway 1A, have become yellow and withered. Many families that invested in seedlings and fertilizer are now millions of dong in debt.
“All our money and efforts invested into growing corn have been for nothing,” shares a saddened villager named Pham Van Trung in Ha Tien Commune, Ha Trung District. “We are completely empty-handed now. We will have to find work somewhere so we can eat rice."
Ton Viet Cu, another villager in Ngoc Trao Commune - a key area for growing maize in Thach Thanh District, is facing the same situation. His 3 hectares of hybrid maize blossomed under the harsh sun, couldn’t have seeds and are now gradually dying on dried-up hillsides.
Dry weather has also seriously impacted sugarcane production and will result in a significant reduction of productivity.
Le Dinh Thanh, Head of Thach Thanh District's Agriculture Department said, "The district's 500 hectares of corn are now almost completely ruined. The other 6,020 hectares of sugarcane are also damaged. On top of that, more than 1,000 hectares of rice cannot be planted.”
Statistics from the Thanh Hoa Province's Department of Agriculture & Rural Development showed that as of June 30, 30,000 hectares of rice are waiting to be planted whereas the water-levels are below operable in 25 large dams of the whole province. Moreover, saline water mixing in the rivers also prevents cultivation.
Many other areas in Thanh Hoa Province are also suffering from severe drought. Tinh Gia District has been blasted with high temperatures, at times up to 42 degrees Celsius indoors and above 45 degrees Celsius outside.
"We don’t dare to go out when it’s sunny and hot like fire,” said Cuong, a villager in Thuong Nam Hamlet, Hai Nhan Commune, Tinh Gia District. “But at home, we have to suffer from blackouts. We don’t have water either because we need power to pump from our wells."
The shortage of water is even more serious in Hau Loc District, where hundreds of households rely on only rain water instead of salinated ground-water. However, the drought has exhausted families’ limited water tanks.
"No suffering compares to lack of water,” complained Quyet, a man in Hai Loc Commune, Hau Loc District. “We have to pay 10,000 dong per 20-litre can of river-water. We try to clean sediment and use this water for both bathing and drinking every day."
Using unclean water, people here are facing skin diseases and respiratory tract inflammations.
Water canals completely dried up
People have to buy water for daily life
Quyet using salinated river- water