Ha Tinh, like many other central provinces, despite their current battle with the severe drought, is concerned about the flood season that will follow.
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| Lack of water for farming. |
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| A waterless well. |
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| A fire ocurring in Phuong My Forest. |
This year’s summer has the highest temperatures recorded in over 60 years for central Vietnam. It has been difficult for many places but Huong Khe District may have been hit the hardest.
The heat wave continues to plague the area with temperatures sometimes rising up to 45 Celsius degrees (5 - 6 degrees higher than those predicted by the weather forecast). The hot weather is made worse by the southwest winds coming in from Laos.
Dozens of hectares of rice and crops along the Ho Chi Minh Trail in the communes of Phuc Dong, Phuong My, Phuong Dien, have been destroyed by the extreme heat and lack of moisture. Lusciously green grass areas that once adorned the side of the national highway and Ngan Sau River have now lost their colour. Over 70% of lakes and rivers in these areas are in desperate need of water.
More than 1,000 households in Huong Trach, Phuc Trach, Huong Do and Huong Tra communes, are suffering from a lack of water for their daily activities. Everyday, people in these communes have to travel long distances to buy water for home use.
According to some locals, the prolonged hot weather serves as the main reason for Ngan Sau River to dry out, but it is also because Ho Ho Hydroelectric Power Plant had previously held back the river at its source to acquire water for their reservoir.
Phan Huy Dai, a 90 year old resident from Phuc Trach Commune, said in a sad voice, while fanning himself, “All my life, I have never been through a summer this hot and this dry. My grapefruit garden has died because of the drought.”
Ten fires have broken out over the past two months due to the prolonged heat. Over 30 hectares of pine forests have been destroyed in the communes of Phuong My and Ha Linh (Huong Khe District). Huong Tho Commune of Vu Quang District (near Huong Khe) had the same amount of pine forests all burned to the ground.
Making our way to Loi Sim Village, Huong Trach Commune, where the unexpected accident of a broken dam took place just over a year ago, we found that locals in this area still seem shocked by what happened. It was fortunate however, that there were no injuries or deaths reported and the water only swept away the railway track of the commune.
With no end of the drought in sight, locals have already raised fears and concerns for the coming monsoon season.
Elder Pham Thanh Truyen of Loi Sim Village said, “Two weeks ago, when we were in the middle of a severe drought, Ngan Sau River suddenly was filled with water, and we thought the floods were here already. However, we found out that Ho Ho - Quang Binh Hydroelectric Power Plant had actually released water from their reservoir to help ease the drought problem. We, people of Loi Som live right by the river, so we cannot help but worry about what happens when the flood season arrives.”
