A section of the floor of a house in Hai Phong City has been mysteriously hot –really hot — for several days.

Ms. Hua Thi Loi said that the ground floor of her house suddenly warmed up overnight on December 1.

Ms. Hua Thi Loi said that the ground floor of her house suddenly warmed up overnight on December 1. Family members were frightened when they went downstairs that morning and suddenly felt a section of the floor burning their feet. The family called for help from the local authorities.

Experts visited the house to measure the hot area of the floor. They took its temperature and found it was 80oC. They checked for toxic gas but didn’t find it in the house. They guessed that perhaps gas from a sewage tank burnt and burn up the floor. However, there is no toilet tank at the site of burning. Fearing fire or explosion, the family evacuated to a neighbour house.

After local experts confirmed there was no toxic gas or radiation, the family returned home. The floor temperature also cooled down for several days later, but it suddenly warmed up again, reaching 48oC on December 6. The family and their neighbours continued to worry about this strange phenomenon.

Geological experts say that it is not so mysterious when floors heat up. Dr. Nguyen Van Lam, director of the Centre for Environmental Protection and Consultancy (and also Secretary General of the Vietnam Association of Geology and Hydrography), said that his centre has solved two similar cases in Hanoi. Lam said the floor may turn hot because of electricity leakage, hot water streams or burning methane.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Son Thuy from the Hai Phong Department of Science and Technology said that the department checked Ms. Loi’s house and discovered no problem.

However, the floor was still hot on December 8, in an area of about one square meter. At the beginning, only a small area was hot. Loi said that a wooden stair post has cracked due to the heat.

“I reported to the local authorities again but they told me I can be confident there is no problem for health. It is even a good thing when the weather is cold like this,” Loi said.

The family no longer worries, but many curious people still visit their home to experience this strange phenomenon.

VietNamNet/VNE