Hanoi (VNA) –As of 6 am on June 25 the death toll in flood and landslides rose to seven inthe northern mountainous province of Ha Giang and Lai Chau, according to theCentral Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control.
Of the victims, twowere residents of Ha Giang and the rest five were from Lai Chau.
At the same time, eightpeople in Lai Chau went missing and five were injured after heavy rains triggeredflood and landslides over the past two days.
As of 8:00am of June25, floods and landslides destroyed 47 houses in Ha Giang, Lai Chau, ThaiNguyen and Lao Cai provinces, while damaging 246 others. As many as 525 houseswere submerged by floodwater.
In Lai Chau, 391hectares of rice and crop were affected, while 4 tonnes of rice varieties were ruinedby floods as consequences of heavy rains which started on June 22.
National roads 4D and279 connecting Lao Cai and Lai Chau were blocked by masses of soil and stones fromserious landslides, causing traffic congestion. Some provincial roads of LaiChau were also damaged.
Total losses areestimated to reach over 76.6 billion VND, with Lai Chau being the hardest hitwith damages amounting to about 60 billion VND.
The committee hasasked localities to drastically implement the Prime Minister’s dispatch on the prompt overcoming of flood consequences, searching for the missing, giving treatmentto the injured and supporting the dead victims’ families.
In the dispatch, thePM also asked relevant ministries, sectors and localities to continue inspectareas with high risk of landslide and flashflood, ensure safety for dykes andreservoirs, make sure traffic in national routes is smooth, and regularlyupdate information and developments of floods and disasters to people forpreparations.-VNA