A house submerged after Sepien-Senamnoi hydropower dam broke (Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – The burst in the Sepien-Senamnoi hydropower dam in Laos on July 23 will have little impact on Vietnam’s MekongDelta region.
The Central Steering Committee for DisasterPrevention and Control in Hanoi released the information at a conference onJuly 25.
At the event, the committee detailed theincident, saying that prolonged downpours caused by Storm Son Tinh had worsenedflooding in many regions in Laos, bursting a dam at Sepien-Senamnoi hydropower reservoir in Sanamxaydistrict of Attapeu province at 8pm of July 23.
The dam collapse caused serious floods inlower areas, leaving more than 131 missing and 587 families with 3,060 people homeless, Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith said at apress conference on July 25. On July 24, the Lao governmentdeclared Sanamxay district an emergency disaster zone.
According to a report of the ASEANCoordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA), monsoonand rainfalls brought by Storm Son Tinh have affected 3,452 families in 349villages of 41 Lao districts, and destroyed more than 200 houses entirely.
However, the Southern Institute of WaterResources Research of Vietnam said this incident will not cause a big impact onthe Mekong Delta region, as flows from the dam collapse will only raise thewater level in the region by 7-10cm at the Tan Chau station on July 27-28.
The Central Steering Committee for DisasterPrevention and Control stressed the need to keep a close watch on the incident.
The Sepien-Senamnoi hydropower plant was being constructed by the Sepien-Senamnoi Power Company (PNPC).
PNPC is a joint venture between Republic ofKorea’s SK E&C and Korea Western Power, Thailand’s Ratchaburi ElectricityGenerating Holding, and Laos’ Holding Sate Enterprise.
The project, estimated to cost 1.02 billionUSD, is the first build-operate-transfer (BOT) model to be undertaken by Koreancompanies in Laos.-VNA
VNA
