VietNamNet Bridge - The HCM City authorities have set specific goals and decided to apply more serious measures in the action plan to reduce flooding in the 2016-2020 term with hopes of eliminating many ‘hot spots’. The plan is estimated to cost VND97.3 trillion.

The heavy rain which lasted two hours on September 26 inundated the city. The landings and takeoffs at Tan Son Nhat Airport had to stop for one hour, while many areas at the airport were flooded.

Hundreds of streets in the city flooded, while thousands of people on the way from office to home had to wade through inundated streets. Even those who were at home also suffered as water overflowed into their houses. Thousands of motorbikes at a parking lot in district 1 downtown were inundated.

As the Thu Duc University Village was 0.5 meters below water level, students could not get in or out because their motorbikes could not work. 

The water drainage went slowly because the sewers were too small and were obstructed by garbage.

HCMC residents have been suffering from floods for years and billions of dong have been spent to ease the flooding, but the situation has not improved considerably.

The HCM City authorities have set specific goals and decided to apply more serious measures in the action plan to reduce flooding in the 2016-2020 term with hopes of eliminating many ‘hot spots’.

The action plan on reducing flooding in 2016-2020 was once again put into discussion at the city’s Party’s Executive Committee meeting late last week.

The executive committee decided that urgent measures to reduce flooding will be implemented in 2016-2018, while long-term projects will be implemented in 2019-2020.

In 2016-2018, the city will upgrade the water drainage system to eliminate the ‘hot spots’ on 8 out of 17 roads and 60 out of 179 alleys. 

During this period, the work on tide control will be fulfilled to stop the flooding on nine roads, including two heavily inundated ones – Luong Dinh Cua and Huynh Tan Phat, and the others less inundated.

Also in 2016-2018 the construction of three waste water treatment plants, Tham Luong – Ben Cat (131,000 cubic meters per day), Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe (480,000 cubic meters), and Binh Hung (469,000 cubic meters), will be completed.

According to the HCMC Planning & Investment Department and the HCMC Operation Center against Flooding, the total amount of money needed to fight against flooding in 2016-2020 would be VND97.3 trillion. 

Of this, ongoing projects are capitalized at VND23 trillion, while total capital to be mobilized in the next five years is VND74.35 trillion.

The VND74.35 trillion would come from five sources, including the city’s budget (VND6.967 trillion), SCIC (VND10 trillion), the central budget (VND1.788 trillion), ODA (VND9.789 trillion) and investors (VND9.926 trillion).


Thanh Mai