Medical workers come to each household to guide how to use disinfectants (Illustrative photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The Central Relief Aid Board has received a total of over 3.5 billion VND donated by people, agencies, organisations and localities nationwide to assist residents in the northern mountainous localities which had been severely hit by floods.
On August 10, the Standing Board of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee received 200 million VND from the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha Central Committee, 360 million VND from the National Assembly Office, and 1 billion VND from Vietnam Insurance, and more.
Venerable Thich Thanh Nhieu, Standing Vice President of the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha said the Council called on monks, nuns and followers nationwide to lend a helping hand to flash flood-hit people in the north immediately after learning about the disasters.
He said he expects that the donations will be promptly delivered to the needy people to assist their re-building efforts.
Officials from the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee and the Central Relief Aid Board assured that the donations will be distributed to flood-hit localities immediately to help the residents rebuild their houses and stabilise their lives.
On the day, a delegation from Ho Chi Minh City led by Tat Thanh Cang, a Party Central Committee member and Vice Secretary of the municipal Party Committee, visited flood-hit people in Dien Bien province and handed over 1.2 billion VND donated by the city’s citizens and authorities.
Earlier on August 9, the Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRC) launched a text-message programme to raise funds for people in flood-hit areas in northern Vietnam.
By texting “UH” to the number 1409, a donor can donate 20,000 VND to the programme, which lasts from August 9 to October 7.
Heavy rains and subsequent flash floods occurred across northern mountainous provinces over the last few days, especially in Yen Bai, Son La and Lai Chau provinces.
According to the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, by August 7, heavy rains and flash floods had claimed 26 lives and left 15 others missing and 27 injured.
About 230 houses had been swept away or collapsed while 245 others had been damaged and 340 hectares of rice had been submerged by floodwater. Nearly 400 households had had to leave their homes to safer places.
The intense floods had also eroded over 25,000 cubic metres of national highways, 117,706 cubic metres of provincial and district roads; damaged 145 irrigation works and 2,072 metres of river dike, causing about over 940 billion VND (41.36 million USD) in economic losses in the region.-VNA
