EN
The Central region of our country is going through fierce days, when a historic flood struck with terrible intensity, recalling the horrifying memories of the "great flood of 1999" - the flood that caused severe damage to the region. In the ancient capital of Hue, people had to "stay up all night" fighting and fleeing the flood, facing the red water that rose suddenly, submerging the city and historical relics. What is alarming is that the authorities have confirmed that this flood has had "very special" developments, even surpassing the historical milestone.
The Chairman of the Hue City People's Committee said, "The flood peak on the Bo River this time exceeded the historic flood in 1999." Accordingly, the rainfall in Thua Thien Hue reached a record with 500 - 700 mm commonly, and Bach Ma peak alone recorded 2,785 mm. The Bo River flood at Phu Oc peaked at 5.25 m, 0.75 m above the third alarm level. Meanwhile, the Huong River flood, although lower than the peak in 1999, was still 1.55 m above the third alarm level, causing the Hue Citadel and many historical relics to sink more than 1 m after peaking at night.
Many roads in Hue were submerged in water as heavy rain continued and did not stop.
Experts say that without the timely operation of the inter-reservoir dam system, the flood peak this time would have been equal to or higher than the historic flood in 1999, the year when Thua Thien Hue suffered terrible human losses.
Heavy rain caused many main roads in central wards and communes of Hue city such as Le Quy Don, To Huu, Nguyen Hue... to be flooded about 0.5-1m deep.
Faced with the critical situation, the entire political system from the city to the grassroots level has deployed drastic flood prevention work since the afternoon of October 25. This initiative has been effective when propaganda and evacuation of people in low-lying areas were carried out "at lightning speed" on the night of October 26 and October 27, contributing to significantly reducing property damage compared to the 1999 flood.
Even when floodwaters first entered major medical facilities, forces were able to move patients to safety. The effective operation of technology support systems like HueS and the consensus of the people were key factors in controlling the situation in the context of the newly implemented two-tier government model that was still full of confusion.
Heavy rains carried a huge amount of water in the upper reaches of rivers in Hue, forcing hydroelectric and irrigation reservoirs to urgently release floodwaters to ensure safety.
Meanwhile, in the ancient town of Hoi An, the situation is no less tense. The water level of the Hoai River has exceeded the second warning level, causing busy tourist routes such as Tran Phu and Hai Ba Trung to be flooded up to 1 meter deep. All traffic activities in the ancient town have had to switch to using boats. Notably, many tourists have chosen to stay to experience the unique feeling of "living in the flood", despite the siege of water.
Statistics from previous historic flood years show that natural disasters in the Central region have caused an estimated loss of more than 36,000 billion VND and left hundreds of people dead and missing. The flood situation is forecast to remain complicated until the end of October. The Civil Defense Command has continuously advised people to absolutely not be subjective after the water recedes, especially to be careful with the risks of accidents and epidemics. Currently, localities are urgently implementing the motto "where the water recedes, handle it there" to quickly overcome landslides, ensure traffic and clean up the environment, determined to bring life back to normal as soon as possible.
