Villagers knocked off rope bridge

Two people were seriously injured after falling down into a river when a rope bridge tipped over Thursday in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum.

Seven farmers of Ngoc Hoi District were riding their motorbikes over the bridge when strong winds blew them into the Po Ko River.

Two men were seriously injured after hard objects in the river stabbed them in their leg and chest.

“Water has swept away my motorbike, the biggest property of my family,” A Duoc, one of the victims, said sadly.

The river in the isolated commune of Dak Ang has become famous after local media ran stories and photos showing about 50 residents having to cross it daily using rope and pulley.

According to the articles, after floods September last year swept away all the bridges across the river, locals have been using a rope operated by a pulley to cross the 500m-wide river.

The stories have spurred outrage among the public as the Ministry of Transport evades responsibility by saying local officials had failed to report the case or ask for new bridges.

Domestic and overseas philanthropists have chipped in, collecting more than VND6 billion (US$307,700) to build four bridges in the commune.

The aforementioned bridge, costing VND120 million ($6,150), was funded by a philanthropist and put into operation last July.

Nguyen Thanh Ha, chairman of the Ngoc Hoi District People’s Committee, said the bridge was meant for walkers only, but the residents ignored the regulation.

But several residents told Tuoi Tre the bridge was slanted due to faulty construction techniques.

“We told the bridge builders to install two locks at the cable’s joints but they used one only,” villager Nguyen Khac Chin said.

He added local authorities were in charge of designing and constructing the bridge.

Norway funds bio-security project in Vietnam 

The Norwegian Embassy has approved a two year non-refundable aid project of approximately US$1 million to enhance the control and management of bio- safety and bio-security in Vietnam.

Norway’s Ambassador Stale Torstein Risa and Mr. Nguyen Tran Hien, president of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) jointly signed the agreement in Hanoi on December 13.

The project targets at improving standards for the management of bio-safety and bio-security and to increase its management capacity in laboratories at NIHE, National Lung Hospital (NLH) in Hanoi and Pham Ngoc Thach Hospital (PNTH) in Ho Chi Minh City as well as capacity building for the NIHE on evaluation, assessment and monitoring of bio-safety laboratories in the country.

The two year project will be conducted at the three above mentioned locations.

Northern mountain gets rare snowfall

There has been snowfall on Cha Mountain in Lang Son Province as a cold snap hit parts of the northern region this week.

The temperature on the 1,541-meter mountain in Mau Son Commune plummeted to -1 degree Celsius Thursday.

Frost covered the grass and hotel fences in the Mau Son tourism area where many tourists have booked rooms to see the snow.

Lang Son gets snow once every few years.

The Cha range, near the Chinese border, consists of dozens of mountains with pristine forests and is uninhabited.

According to the Central Hydrometeorology Forecast Center, the cold snap will last for a few days and also affect several parts of the central and southern regions.

Chilly weather has enveloped Hanoi and several northern provinces, with temperatures dropping to 7-10 degrees Celsius, and to 3-5 degrees in mountainous areas.

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Agribank manager arrested for theft

Ho Chi Minh City police arrested on Tuesday the head of Agribank's Hung Vuong Branch for alleged involvement in a "cheating and arrogation of property" case.

The HCMC Public Security Department issued the decision to commence criminal proceedings against Pham Khac Dai Dien.

The department has also conducted a research of his house and office.

According to initial investigations, Dien allegedly allowed Bui Thi Kien Ha, director of Dai Viet Bao Company Ltd and deputy general director of Nhan Thuan JSC, to withdraw VND30 billion (US$1.5 million) that she had deposited before March this year.

Between December 16, 2009 and March 5 this year, Ha borrowed VND30 billion from four people for the alleged purpose of maintaining a balance in her company's account.

Dien, however, did not block the account in his bank. This allowed her to withdraw the money, but Ha has not been able to settle her debt with the four lenders.

In March, the lenders discovered that Ha had withdrawn the money from the bank.

While the case was under investigation, Dien and Ha jointly wrote the lenders' fake signatures on documents which allowed her to withdraw the money.

On November 18, Ha was arrested on charges of "cheating and arrogating property". Police said she had admitted to the alleged crime.

VN vessel sinks in East Sea, 27 fishermen missing

Twenty-seven fishermen were missing after a Vietnam-registered vessel sank in the East Sea , Chinese maritime rescue authorities said on Dec. 16.

The fishing vessel, named Phu Tan, capsized and sank due to strong gales in the sea about 110 nautical miles to the west of Sanya city in the southern island province of Hainan , according to China ’s Xinhua News Agency.

Chinese maritime rescue authorities dispatched a rescue vessel to search for the missing fishermen after receiving two emergency calls from the Vietnam Maritime Administration at noon.

Hindered by gale force winds of up to 90km per hour, the rescue vessel was expected to reach the site where the fishing vessel sank by 9 p.m.

A towboat travelling about 40 sea miles away from the site was also ordered to assist with the rescue.

PV