Over 50,000 Myanmar people evacuate due to dam breach

(Residents negotiate a road after water from the Swar dam flooded villages in the Bago region of central Myanmar. (Source:AFP)

Nay Pyi Taw (VNA) - More than 50,000 people have left their homes in central Myanmar after part of a dam failed on August 29 morning, inundating nearby areas and hindering traffic on a major highway, authorities said.

A total of 12,000 households, or about 54,000 people in 100 villages, were displaced, said the Myanmar Department of Relief and Resettlement.

Meanwhile, a source from the Natural Disaster Management Department said that many people, including some not directly hit by flooding, had decided to leave their homes for fear the waters could rise further.

According the Myanmar Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, competent forces have arranged temporary tents for the evacuees.

Earlier, due to uninterrupted heavy rains for many days, the Sar Chaung dam in Bago region suddenly broke, flushing water into the town of Swar and 100 villages nearby. Water from the dam also spilled onto the Swar section of the Yangon-Mandalay highway, forcing authorities to close the road.

The Myanmar authorities have sent rescue forces to the site to overcome the consequences of the dam breach.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Commander-in-chief of Myanmar’s army Min Aung Hlaing told local media after visiting the flooded area that water still flows very fast. At present, military trucks carrying boats to assist the evacuation of residents are coming to affected areas.

Myanmar’s heavy annual monsoon rains have caused widespread flooding, resulting in the displacement of more than 100,000 people and killing at least 11 in July. –VNA