Hydro-power dam in danger, 20,000 people evacuated

VietNamNet Bridge – By October 4, water continued flowing from upstream to spread over the Ho Ho dam in the central province of Ha Tinh. 40 million cubic meters of water may spill downstream, threatening nearly 20,000 people. 

Ha Tinh authorities said that, due to downpours, Ho Ho Reservoir was full. However, water couldn’t be discharged to reduce water pressure because the spillway door couldn’t open. Water from the upstream rose highly, overflowing the dam. The dam can break anytime and over 40 million cubic meters of water can spill to the lower section, threatening the lives of nearly 20,000 people in Huong Khe district (Ha Tinh province) and Minh Hoa district (Quang Binh province).

On October 4 afternoon, 13,300 residents in Huong Khe and 4,300 in Minh Hoa were asked to evacuate. Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) group asked the Northern Power Corporation to directly deal with this incident.

The spillway door was fixed on the same day, reducing pressure on the dam. However, many holes appeared at the dam’s base. Resident forces tried to fish out big logs floating from upstream to prevent them from hitting the dam.

In Ha Tinh province, Vu Quang and Huong Khe districts are seriously flooded, up to 2m deep in some places. Over 2,500 soldiers are now in these districts to evacuate residents.

In Quang Binh province, 15,400 households and hundreds of thousand hectares were flooded by October 14. By October 4, floods and landslides killed at least 12 and injuring four, with three people unaccounted for.

The floods have threatened thousands of hectares of rice fields and isolated thousands of households.

The latest figures from the central region show that four people have been killed in Ha Tinh Province, one in Quang Binh Province, three in Quang Tri Province and four in Nghe An Province. Four more people were injured and three remain missing.

Meteorologists warned of possible flash floods and landslides in submerged and low-lying areas from Ha Tinh to Thua Thien-Hue.

Director Bui Minh Tang remarked a low pressure system, which had slowly moved west-northwest, was likely to increase in the next few days and would continue to bring heavy rainfall to the region. Heavy downpours were forecast from Nghe An to Quang Tri and a cold spell was likely to occur in northern provinces in the upcoming days.