On the afternoon of November 19, prolonged heavy rain and floods in the Ba River basin caused severe damage to many coffee and crop growing areas in Gia Lai.
The communes and wards in the west of Gia Lai mainly produce and cultivate agricultural crops such as coffee, durian, banana, pepper, etc. Heavy rain and flooding have significantly affected perennial crops, including coffee trees.
Many banana areas were broken and the coffee was damaged by the growing area along rivers and streams, landslides and fallen fruit during the harvest period.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Lua, a resident of Bo Ngoong commune, said: "During the peak coffee harvest season, continuous rain made it difficult to dry agricultural products. Some households were harvesting on the fields when suddenly floodwaters came, sweeping away a lot of coffee. Natural disasters make life more difficult.
Thousands of hectares of coffee in Gia Lai are in the harvest season. The flood caused the harvest to be interrupted, making it difficult for workers to enter the garden, and many ripe fruits fell off, affecting productivity and quality.
In communes such as Ia Rsai, Ia Hiao, Po To, Ia Pa, Ayun Pa... local authorities have mobilized forces to go to their homes to rescue people, evacuate from low-lying, flooded areas; and support the transportation of food and agricultural products of people to high-altitude areas.
Mr. Pham Anh Tuan - Chairman of Gia Lai Provincial People's Committee - requested owners of irrigation and hydroelectric reservoirs in the area to stop releasing water to reduce floods in downstream areas.
Localities focus on mobilizing maximum forces and means to rescue, search and rescue, and bring people to safety.
