VietNamNet Bridge – The construction of river embankments and control of swift currents in the Sai Gon River to prevent landslides in the Thanh Da peninsula area are urgent priorities, HCM City public works official has said.

Tran Minh Dung, deputy director of the Department of Transport and Public Works, said an embankment project, begun recently, was shoring up river banks in Thanh Da prone to erosion and landslides.

In other areas like the suburban districts of Thu Duc, Nha Be, and Can Gio, local authorities and waterway management officials are jointly inspecting riverbanks and issuing warnings about the most landslide-prone areas.

Under the embankment project, the public works department will shore up rivers for a length of three kilometres.

Transport officials have also started inspections to locate swift currents in the Nha Be River in Nha Be District and Sai Gon River.

To expedite these projects, Dung said, it was crucial to evacuate households living in risk-prone areas and move them to safer places.

According to the city's Committee for Flood Control and Prevention, embankments in 30 places in Thu Duc District and District 12 have been repeatedly eroded, resulting in land several metres inland being washed away.

Nguyen Phuoc Thao, deputy head of the committee, said he had asked district authorities to speed up projects to protect river dykes and embankments and prevent landslides before strong tides return the next two months.

The public works department said it would step up action against illegal exploitation of sand from riverbeds since this could change the rivers' flows and cause erosion.

According to authorities in Binh Thanh District, where Thanh Da is situated, landslides have occurred on the peninsula in the last fortnight, sweeping away 15 house and threatening several more. No deaths have beer reported and most residents have been evacuated from the landslip-hit areas.

They have also warned of more landslides, and urged residents to consolidate dykes and embankments to protect their lives and property in the face of strong tides and heavy downpours in coming days.

(Source: Viet Nam News)