PHÒNG CHỐNG BÃO ! – Prevent storm damage – Prévention des catastrophes naturelles

 A Ho Chi Minh City agency warned Saturday that 35 riverbank areas are likely to collapse after fifteen houses slipped into a canal three weeks ago. The Department of Traffic and Public Works sent an emergency memo to the municipal government listing sites in six districts that were on the verge of tumbling into rivers and canals.Districts 8, 9, Can Gio, Nha Be, Binh Chanh and Binh Thanh were all listed. Tran The Ky, head of the department’s waterway traffic section, said Nha Be is the most at risk.The 15 houses previously lost collapsed into Binh Thanh District’s Thanh Da Canal in late June and early July. No one was injured, but experts have warned that a major truck route running alongside the canal – Xo Viet Nghe Tinh Street – could also collapse if no action is taken.The ground between the canal and Xo Viet Nghe Tinh is splitting, with large cracks creeping as close as 1 meter to the road.The area has been hit by six landslides that have killed two people since 2002. The canal embankment had been zoned for reconstruction prior to this year’s mishaps, but the project has yet to begin.The city Department of Natural Resources and Environment has attributed the weak ground foundation to the over-exploitation of sand along the canal bank and the rampant construction of houses too close to the water.Story from Thanh Nien News Published: 22 July, 2007