Huge efforts made to deal with natural disaster consequences

Over the past days, great efforts have been made to deal with consequences of torrential rains and floods in line with instructions of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control.

As of 9pm on October 15, heavy rains and floods destroyed 649 houses and submerged 150,685 others, and damaged 168 National Highway sites and 33,639 metres of roads.

Up to 900ha of rice and 5,514ha of other crops have been inundated, and 3,978ha of aquatic farms have been damaged. Some 445,700 heads of poultry and animals have been swept away or killed by floodwater.

The same day, PM Phuc issued a dispatch instructing the rescue operations and settlement of consequences of landslides at ranger station 67 and Rao Trang 3 hydropower plant in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue.

Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung, head of the Committee, and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong, deputy head of the Committee, had field trips to the locality to oversee the work.

The Committee has also sent two working groups to localities from Thanh Hoa to Quang Ngai to monitor natural disaster prevention and control there.

As of 7:30pm on October 15, bodies of all 13 rescue team members buried in the landslide at ranger station 67, and a construction worker at Rao Trang 3 hydropower plant in Phong Xuan commune, Phong Dien district, had been retrieved.

The rescue team included Major General Nguyen Van Man, Deputy Commander of Military Region 4, and Chairman of the Phong Dien district People's Committee Nguyen Van Binh.

The National Committee for Disaster Response and Search and Rescue, and military units deployed 9,607 people to join hands with local forces in these attempts.

Localities have also evacuated residents in the areas prone to natural disasters, closed schools and visited families of victims.

The Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control has asked northern cities and provinces to keep a close eye on flood developments, and managed reservoirs, especially Son La, Hoa Binh, Thac Ba and Tuyen Quang.

Meanwhile, central localities need to continue with search and rescue operations, help victims with food, clean water and housing, and evaluate losses caused by natural disasters, the Committee said.

It has also ordered intensifying communications to provide updates on developments of rains and foods, and guide local residents to take countermeasures.

The central provinces of Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Nam have called for the support of food, medicines, disinfectants, and rescue equipment.