Fisherman together pull a sunk ship inland
The Office of the General Department of Disaster Prevention and Control under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development announced that on the morning of April 1, Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh had an urgent online meeting with administrators of central provinces from Thua Thien - Hue to Khanh Hoa, ministries and agencies to make efforts to minimize the hazards created by natural disasters.
According to the General Department of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, this is an unseasonal natural disaster. Because it is currently the beginning of the dry season in the Central region and the annual rainy season in the Central region usually occurs from September to November.
It is forecasted that in the coming time, thunderstorms, heavy rains, floods, inundations, flash floods, and landslides will continue to occur.
Therefore, local governments need to urgently support people to overcome damage to aquatic products and agricultural production and water drainage downstream. At the same time, localities should store rainwater in reservoirs in upstream areas for the rice harvest in the downstream areas.
On the afternoon of April 1, at Bai Nom boat anchorage at Nhon Ly Commune in the Central Province of Binh Dinh’s Quy Nhon City, the owner of the fishing boat BD 0610 TS Nguyen An Vinh at Ly Chanh village in Nhon Ly Commune said that the wave was so unexpectedly high that he has never seen before. The wave kept ripping off all the anchors of the boats moored at Nom beach and then engulfing them all. He moaned because his nearly VND100 million ship was destroyed and the machinery is damaged, but he can’t borrow a loan to build the ship for a living.
The coastal area of An Hoa Hai Commune at Long Thuy sea village in the Central Province of Phu Yen’s Tuy Hoa City became ragged after a storm of rain and whirlwind in the early morning of March 31. Worse, 91 boats in the area were sunk while approximately 2,450 cages of lobster seed along the shore were destroyed by waves.
On the morning of April 1, Quy Nhon City gave VND2 million to each household in Nhon Ly commune that has been suffering losses. The provincial Red Cross Society also had prepared hundreds of gifts to present to fishermen.
The People's Committee of Binh Dinh Province has directed the Department of Finance to take VND15 million (US$657) from the provincial budget to support each fisherman whose 20-50CV vessels sank and VND5 million for fishermen whose ships under 20CV were damaged.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Phu Yen Provincial People's Committee Tran Huu The informed that, in the immediate future, the province prioritizes searching for two missing fishermen and planning to salvage the wreck. Many fishermen have borrowed huge amounts of money from banks to raise lobsters, but now they have lost everything and are in danger of falling into debt. The province will work with the bank to delay the debt for the affected fishermen.
Heavy rain in recent days has destroyed 4,500ha of winter-spring paddy crop in Quang Ngai Province. The crops are submerged in rainwaters
Meanwhile, heavy rain also devastated nearly 20,000 hectares of harvest-ready paddy crops in several districts including Phu Ninh, Thang Binh, Duy Xuyen, Dai Loc in Quang Nam Province. Paddy crops and vegetables were deeply submerged in rainwater.
On the afternoon of April 1, the Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control, Quang Tri province said that in Dakrong District, the river level in the area rose to flood villages in Ba Long commune, Ta Long commune, and A Vao commune causing traffic disruption, affecting local inhabitants’ lives and daily activities.
Critically, at the quarry area in A Tieng Commune in Quang Nam Province’s Tay Giang District, three people driving an excavator across an underground bridge were swept away by floodwater from upstream. Two of them managed to swim to shore safely, and 36-year-old man from the Northern City of Hai Phong was swept away by floodwater.
According to the National Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, due to unseasonal rains, floods, and thunderstorms, central provinces from Thua Thien – Hue Province to Khanh Hoa Province experienced heavy rain with an average amount of up to 200-300mm from March 31 to April 1.
According to the update, one person died due to floods and storms while another person was missing because of a boat sinking in Phu Yen Province.
Moreover, two houses collapsed, 37 houses had their roofs blown off while 221 boats and boats sunk and 2,450 rafts were damaged in Phu Yen Province. Floods have flooded 48,420ha of rice and 6,857ha of vegetables in the provinces of Quang Nam, Phu Yen, and Binh Dinh.
