The level of the Mekong reached an alarming point in Vientiane yesterday, leading authorities to advise riverside communities to be prepared for flooding.

According to a notice issued by the Meteorology and Hydrology Department, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, residents of Nongda village in Sisattanak district and Hom village in Hadxaifong district, and others living in low-lying areas near the river, should be on the alert for flooding in the coming days as more rain is forecast from August 28-30.

The level of the Mekong in Sisattanak district is currently 11 metres and 68cm, at the point where the flood warning level is 11 metres and 50cm and the danger level is 12 metres and 50cm, the notice stated.

Following the weather bureau’s warning, people living in at-risk areas are envisaging the possibility of moving their belongings and animals to higher ground. 

Flooding has already occurred many parts of the country, including Xayaboury and Oudomxay provinces and in Vientiane.

In Pakngum district, authorities have closed a road from August 27 to September 4 so they can pump water through the Makhiew sluice gate into the Mekong River, in a bid to prevent flooding downstream in central Vientiane.

The move follows weeks of prolonged rain, which has seen the Mekong rise to alarming levels.

After closing the road, officials from the Ministry of the Agriculture and Forestry, the Vientiane Agriculture and Forestry Department, and Pakngum district installed a pump and piping to suck water from the Huaymakhiew channel and discharge it into the Mekong.

The road will be closed from 9am-3pm and from 7pm-10pm while pumping takes place.

The road closure means that alternative arrangements have been made for vehicles that normally use this route, with traffic diverted onto a smaller road between the junction in Makhiew village and Nalong village in Hadxaifong district.

Motorbikes can travel between Makhiew and Nalong villages along the riverbank, while cars, other small vehicles and minibuses can use the normal route when the pump is not running, but trucks and other large vehicles will not be able to use this route.  

In Xayaboury province, Khop, Xaysathan, Ngeun and Xiengheun districts recently suffered extensive flooding, with the cost of the damage estimated at billions of kip.

In Khop district, where the river burst its banks and caused flooding on August 21, the damage was assessed at more than 78 billion kip.

It has been calculated that it will cost more than 32 billion kip to restore the damage caused to buildings in eight villages.

The bill to repair infrastructure has been put at about 34 billion kip, while it will also cost at least 1 billion kip to restore crop fields.

Authorities also reckon it will cost 675 million kip to repair the damage done to 250,69 hectares of farms, and 243 million kip to restore 96 hectares of vegetable plots, and recover or replace livestock. Heavy rain fell in Xaysathan district from August 15 to 23, causing ponds and irrigation channels to flood, while roads and bridges in several villages were flooded.

Landslides, fallen trees and other obstacles impeded travel, and it is thought it will cost about 4 billion kip to make roads passable again.

Village officials and residents of Xaysathan district are working together to clear roads of obstacles, but at least one bridge is impassable and some electricity poles have collapsed.

Provincial authorities are also keeping a close watch on the situation at a 298-hectare coffee plantation, operated by a Chinese company.

Asia News Network (ANN)/Vientiane Times