Two hospitals in Hanoi are facing major difficulties after the water pipeline broke again.
Hospital 198 faces difficulties after water shortage
Nearly 900 patients and 800 employees at Hospital 198 have had to find ways to work around the water shortage. The hospital is buying clean water from other places for operations and needs help from other hospitals to deal with dirty laundry.
Dr. Nguyen Van Hien said, "This is very dangerous. We have 30 operations every day and doctors can't do the operations if there is no water. Water is vital to dozens of dialysis patients too."
Hanoi Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital receives 400 patients daily and also faces the same situation. The hospital had to make plans to send emergency cases to other hospitals.
Patients at the Caesarean section of Hanoi Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital on September 29
Nguyen Van Thao said to Vietnamnet that his wife's Caesarean section had been postponed for three days. The hospital's water supply returned to normal on September 30.
The water pipeline from Da River to Hanoi broke for an incredible 14th time on September 25 and then broke again the next day, affecting 70,000 households in Hoang Mai, Thanh Xuan and Ha Dong districts.
Patient stores clean water at Hanoi Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital
The pipeline went into operation six years ago, but it has broken multiple times. The Ministry of Construction said the material used in the construction was unsuitable for supplying such a huge amount of water to the city. Vinaconex invested in the VND1.5 trillion (USD71.4 million) project, and its affiliate, the Vinaconex Glass Fibre Reinforced Polyester Pipe Company, supplied the pipes. Seven officials of Vinaconex Glass Fibre were prosecuted on July 14 for regulatory offences.
City authorities subsequently began planning a second pipeline to bring water from the Da River to the capital, and decided to trust Vinaconex again with the tender.
