Water recedes, mud covers streets
At noon, the sun shines down on the muddy roads in hamlet 3, That Khe commune. Waste, household items, and damaged goods are pulled out by people after the floodwaters receded.
In small alleys, the sound of brushes sweeping, shovels shoveling mud, and the sound of water pouring on the floor continuously echoed. People were busy scrubbing, collecting, and trying to salvage the remaining usable assets.
In the house still marked by floodwaters, Ms. Phuc Thi Thao was cleaning and picking up damaged furniture alone when her husband and children had not yet returned. According to Ms. Thao, the water started to rise at about 12:00 on August 22. Initially, she did not think the water would rise because in previous years, this area had never experienced such a serious flood.
Water quickly flooded into the house, flooding many properties such as air conditioners, water heaters, refrigerators, tables and chairs and household items. Due to the sudden flood, Ms. Thao did not have time to move her belongings, and most of her property was damaged.
On August 23, when the water rose near the watch area, she had to ask the rescue force to help her move to temporarily shelter at a high school in the area. Her family estimated the damage to be about 50-60 million VND, including many newly purchased electrical equipment and utensils. "In previous years, the water had never risen as high as this time. I did not have time to prop up my belongings, so almost everything in the house was flooded and damaged" - Ms. Thao shared.
Not far from there, Ms. Hoang Thi Chan (68 years old) diligently wipes the plastic chairs covered in mud after the flood. Living alone, she maintains a small store selling rice, clothes and groceries.
When water flooded into the house, she only had time to save a part of the goods. In the days when floods surrounded her, she had to stay on the upper floor, asking neighbors for food and a gas stove to maintain living. "Whatever could be moved, that's good. It's already lucky that people are not in danger," Ms. Chan said.
At night when the water recedes, she almost doesn't sleep, taking advantage of cleaning and shoveling mud to avoid dry and hard mud. According to her, in the past 3 years, the area has experienced four floods, causing many households in Trang Dinh and That Khe to lose the third summer-autumn rice crop completely.
Nearly 800 people clean up wholesale market overnight
The atmosphere of overcoming the consequences also took place urgently at Gieng Vuong market, Ky Lua ward - one of the largest wholesale markets in Lang Son province. From August 24 to the early morning of August 25, nearly 800 officers and soldiers of the army, police, ward officials, along with people and small traders simultaneously collected garbage, raked mud, sprayed surface waste and cleaned each stall.
Due to the impact of storm No. 4 and prolonged heavy rain, the Ky Cung river water rose, causing the market to be deeply flooded from August 22. Nearly 800 business households had to urgently move assets and goods.
Ms. La Thi Hong - Vice Chairwoman of Ky Lua Ward People's Committee - informed that the locality determines where the water recedes, sanitize it, focus on cleaning the entire market, ensuring environmental and food safety before small traders return to business.
Along with general cleaning, specialized forces check about 800 circuit breakers before restoring power. Many stalls use refrigerators and refrigeration cabinets, so the electrical system must be carefully checked to avoid short circuits after being submerged in water.
Race ahead of the opening day
With only more than 1 week left until the opening day, some schools in Na Sam commune are still flooded with mud. On the afternoon of August 24, at Na Sam Secondary School, teachers, parents, police and soldiers gathered to shovel mud, clean classrooms, and rearrange tables and chairs.
Ms. To Thu Hoai - Principal of Na Sam Secondary School - shared that the school is located near the river, so when the water rises, the amount of mud overflowing is very large. Fortunately, the school proactively brought electronics, equipment and teaching aids up high, so damage was limited. However, some classrooms and facilities still need repair to ensure conditions to welcome students on September 5.
At Na Sam Elementary School, Ms. Duong Thi Thanh Nga - the school principal - recounted that on August 23, floodwaters rose to the level of the 1st floor window. Soldiers and police supported bringing tables, chairs, and equipment to the upper floor. When the water receded, officials, teachers, and parents immediately returned to clean the school and spray disinfectant.
Senior Lieutenant Colonel Pham Dinh Tuan - Regiment Commander of Regiment 123, Lang Son Provincial Military Command - informed that the unit has deployed 160 officers and soldiers to support in Trang Dinh, That Khe, Na Sam and the former Lang Son city area, of which more than 30 people were reinforced for Na Sam.
