One person was killed, three others injured and one still reported missing when a water pipe at the Dam Bol hydropower plant in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong burst on Tuesday morning.
Rescue workers search for victims (Photo: SGGP)
Nguyen Hong Van, a resident from Hamlet 4 of Loc Bac Commune in Bao Lam District, said he heard a very loud blast before an enormous amount of water and muddy soil gushed out.
The muddy soil buried entire farms and two houses belonging to Vu Thi Hoa and Le Thi Be.
Hoa and her three children were swept away and were found in the afternoon. One of her sons aged 11 died, while she and remaining two children sustained injuries.
The missing victim was identified as a 33 year old woman named Vu Thi Luong, who was swept away while she was working in a coffee farm.
Nguyen Van Trieu, chairman of the Bao Lam District People’s Committee, said the district has mobilized about 300 rescue workers to search for victims, all hailing from Hamlet 4.
The muddy soil has also flowed over and covered an area of about 10 hectares of farm produce.
Dam Bol plant, invested by Bao Tan Hydropower Joint Stock Company, has a total capacity of 9.6 MW and is on trial operation. The plant’s water pipes were supplied and installed by Hanoi-based T&T Group.
The burst water pipe, 6 meters in diameter and 3 kilometers in length, transported water from the Dam Bol water reservoir to the hydropower plant in Da Teh District.
The pipe was laid under coffee farm lands and some residential houses.
The cause of the pipe burst is still under investigation.
