Prolonged hot weather and drought, plus the shortage of electricity, has pounded the central provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh.

Drought sends farmers rushing to rescue rice

“We have never experienced such a fierce drought like this year. With power outages very often, we couldn’t pump water to irrigate our crops, so we have lost it all,” lamented Ho Duc That, a vegetable gardener in Nghe An.

Vegetable fields in Nghe An have withered because of hot weather and power cuts. Analysts estimate that each family has lost many millions of dong.

Dao Thi Truc, whose single hectare of onions has withered, said, “If the drought continues, we will be surely brought to ruin. We will not only lack water for vegetables, but also water for humans and cattle.”

The water shortage is even more serious in the mountainous areas of Nghe An. Residents in Thanh Chuong district have had to conserve water for nearly a month. Most wells and streams are dry. Residents must dig wells near the edge of rice fields to find water.

The Nghe An Department of Agriculture and Rural Development reports that, due to the drought, 12,600 out of 55,000 hectares of summer-autumn rice fields have been left fallow. Residents must grow other crops because of the water shortage.

The province has 277 dry lakes and reservoirs. The water levels in 300 out of 600 smaller lakes are at 15-30 percent of designed capacity.

In Ha Tinh, drought has hit many districts, and around 7,000 hectares of rice and over 5,000 hectares of other crops have been affected.

Hot weather and the drought are also threatening forests in Nghe An and Ha Tinh. Since early June 2010, more than 10 forest fires have been recorded in Ha Tinh, ruining over 100 hectares. In Nghe An, some forest fires, as well as house and market blazes, have been reported.

Nguyen Xuan Tien, a senior official from the Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasts of the Central Region, asserted that the region’s temperatures have reached the highest level in 50 years, at times reaching above 42 degrees Celsius.

Drought in the central region:

In Ky Son district, Nghe An province, residents must take water from brooks.

These kids must walk several kilometers to find water.

The largest market in western Nghe An burned down on June 20.

A withered tomato field.

Mr. Ho Duc That and his drooping vegetable garden.

Dry onions.

Without water, farmers cannot plant summer-autumn rice.

Planted fields are drying out.

PV