Memories of white nights
On the morning of November 4, the water has begun to recede, but in Le Thuy commune, many places are still deeply flooded, people are taking care of their belongings and cleaning their houses after many days of struggling with floods.
In a still-umid aluminum and glass factory, Mr. Le Duc Thang in Xuan Hoi village (Le Thuy commune) has just cleaned up and recounted the previous flood night. His voice was thick after many nights of not sleeping, and the water rose very quickly in the early morning of November 3. Just outside the field, less than an hour had already flooded into the field. The whole family had to wake up, pull the machinery and equipment up high, and work until morning.
Mr. Thang said that the aluminum frames, cutting machines, and pressing machines weighed hundreds of millions of VND. Every time there is heavy rain, the whole family has to prepare a net to pull it up.
"People in flooded areas must get used to this way of life. No one dares to be subjective, because if you are slow, the water will have reached the kitchen," he said.
The morning showers were still heavy, with some moisture rising from the floor and still splashing water. Mr. Thang looked at the field in front of his house, where in the past few days, the water was almost as deep as the chest of an adult. "Learning from last year's experience, I have to do everything when I see heavy rain. Clearing one step ahead, saving hundreds of damages, he laughed slightly, but his smile was tired after many days of watching the water.
Not far from Mr. Thang's house, Ms. Le Thi Quynh in Cam Hong commune has just cleaned up the lower floor. Ms. Quynh and her children spent a worried night when the water rose to the steps.
At around 1am, the water started to enter the yard. I called the 3 children up and moved their belongings to the upper floor. Not sleeping all night, just worrying about the water rising. My husband has not returned from work far away, the mother and children take turns waving water and making out clothes," she said, holding the floor brooms tightly in her dark hands.
Ms. Quynh's house is located near the fields, flooded every heavy rain season. The flood in 2020 is still a haunting memory when the water rose nearly 2m, all assets were washed away. Therefore, although the flood this year has not reached that level, her family always prepares boats in the yard, stockpiling food and clean water in case they have to relocate.
Steadfastly on duty in floods
Mr. Le Van Son - Chairman of the People's Committee of Le Thuy commune - said that the locality has activated the early warning system since the beginning of the heavy rain, and assigned shock troops to be on duty 24/7 at vulnerable points.
"We have directed 23 villages and hamlets to develop specific response plans. Schools temporarily let students stay home to ensure safety, while raising tables, chairs, and teaching equipment. Police and militia have been setting up checkpoints to support people in evacuation when there are emergency situations," said Mr. Son.
According to Mr. Son, this year's floods have developed rapidly and are complicated, the water level of the Kien Giang River has risen, cutting off many traffic routes.
"However, thanks to people's proactiveness and experience from previous years, no serious human losses have been recorded. The government is still closely monitoring to promptly support low-lying households," he added.
When the water began to recede, the provincial road gradually appeared. Mr. Thang sat on the porch of his house to see the river surface gradually decreasing. "The flood will soon recede. I live in this area, I have to accept it, I just hope it will be peaceful every year, the water won't rise too high," he said quietly.
