According to the statistics, five communes with more than 50 hamlets in the district are still isolated. Despite the maximum forces and machinery being mobilised, most inter-communal roads and inter-village routes have not been cleared due to a large volume of landslide debris. Walking is the only mode to reach these communes, while essential goods’ prices are beginning to increase due to scarcity.
It takes more than an hour to walk to Phi Chi A, the first hamlet in Pa Ve Su commune, which suffered the most during the incident. Although situated only about 20 km from the district’s centre, the hamlet has nearly 50 landslide areas, with a road completely damaged, cutting off the connection between the locale and the outside world. Due to the block, some essential commodities in the commune have started to become scarce with increased prices.
According to Lo Xa Xe, a local shop owner, the price of each packet of install noodles or an egg has increased from VND500 to VND1,000 but he does not have enough goods to sell. Xe had to mobilise all of his seven family members and relatives to carry goods from outside through the landslide areas to the hamlet. They tried hard but only transported over a dozen packets of noodles, eggs, and some other essentials. The limited amount of goods can serve only part of the local need for just one or two days.
As routes to isolated locals remain blocked, trucks can’t carry the necessary supplies to isolated people.
Pan Phi Chong, Vice Chairman of Pa Ve Su commune, confirmed that, due to traffic congestion, goods storage in the commune has run out. Difficult transportation has laid a great negative impact on the lives of local people. Apart from the scarcity of goods, the damage caused by floods and landslides in other areas has also affected the lives of more than 600 households with about 2,000 people in the commune.
Not only Pa Ve Su, other communes of Mu Ca, Thu Lung, Pa U and Ta Pa are also isolated. The transport has been paralysed, although Muong Te district has mobilised all means to remove the landslides and make temporary roads to facilitate people’s travel. The district’s working missions have been dispatched to isolated sites to support the victims. According to Mai Van Thach, Chairman of People's Committee of Muong Te district, the damage to local traffic is huge. In the immediate future, the district will focus on clearing the roads to the centres of such isolated communes. However, even in favourable weather conditions, it could take half a month to clear the roads leading to the aforementioned communes, Thach added.
Thach also informed that, at the beginning of the rainy season, the district had inspected the hoarding of essential necessities in its communes and residential areas. In the immediate future, it will be possible to meet some of the needs of the local people; however, if the situation lasts longer, the essential goods will not be enough to serve them. Therefore, the local authorities are trying their best to solve the problems in the coming days, he affirmed.
Local people try to transport goods to their isolated hamlets.
The recent flooding has claimed one live in Muong Te district, while leaving two others missing and three other injured. Dozens of households have been displaced, while many houses and roads have collapsed. Total losses are estimated at nearly VND40 billion.
The recovery work is still being urgently implemented. In isolated localities, the districts are focusing on mobilising local people to help each other in overcoming difficulties, while directing the concerned forces to find any way possible to supply essential goods for the people in need.
Statistics from the Steering Committees for Disaster Prevention and Control and Search and Rescue in localities in Lai Chau show that the whole province still has ten communes with over 100 hamlets and thousands of households still temporarily isolated due to floods.
