On the morning of August 26, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Tu (Bo De ward, Hanoi), who is working at a printing factory in Dong Da ward, had not yet gone to work in a hurry because he was waiting for the company's notice of resignation.
At 8am, without any notice of work, Mr. Tu took his motorbike out of the house. It took Tu less than an hour to travel.
"Every road is congested, the water is about 20cm deep, some sections are about 40cm deep, many women riding motorbikes with weak steering have fallen. I decided to return home, said Mr. Tu.
When he returned home, Mr. Duc opened his phone and saw a message in the company group for employees to take a day off on August 26 and "waited for the update" at 9:40. Mr. Tu said that the announcement came quite late, so many people had a hard time because they had left their homes, soaked with rain and flooding.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Mai was also miserable because of the flood on August 26.
Ms. Mai is a worker at a fertilizer company in Thanh Liet commune, renting a house in residential group No. 3, Phuong Liet ward. At 6am, Ms. Mai woke up because of heavy rain, the water had already clogged the rental room door. After renting all her belongings to a high place with a friend and turning off her electrical equipment, Ms. Mai went to work.
After 3 hours, Ms. Mai struggled all the way around the boarding house to get to Pham Thu Street, the back gate of Tan Trieu K Hospital. When she reached the Pham Tu intersection with Phan Trong Tue Street, Ms. Mai was advised by the authorities to return because the road was deeply flooded and congested.
"I left the house at 7:15 and returned home at 10:50, feeling soaked from head to toe. Renting a room in Hanoi for 7 years, it was the first time I have seen such a long and deep rain and flooding. I intended to text to ask for a leave of absence but saw that the company group had a notice for employees to take a leave of absence on August 26. We will wait for the notice to go to work before 7am tomorrow morning, said Ms. Mai.
Mr. Doan Van Linh and his wife are renting a room near Yen Nghia Industrial Park. From 3am on August 26, water had flooded into Mr. Linh's rented room. The couple woke up and put their belongings on the table and bed, and brought the blankets, computers, and electrical appliances to the attic.
"The more it rains at work, the more pregnant my wife is. I told my wife to take the initiative to take a leave of absence, prepare food for me, charge my phone battery, fan to recharge and then cut the bridge. I left the house at 7:30 a.m., going for more than an hour to the company even though the company was only 1km from my house. Along the road, motorbikes and cars stalled due to flooding, Mr. Linh recounted.
