26 dead in Laos dam collapse
131 still missing in disaster, PM says, as over 6,000 homeless
At least 26 people have been confirmed dead after an under-construction dam collapsed in southern Laos, local media said, quoting reports from the Attapeu Administration office on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith later said 131 people remain missing, adding that they are all Lao nationals.
The collapse of an auxiliary dam on Monday sent 5 billion cubic meters of water flooding into seven villages in Sanamxay district, damaging more than 1,300 houses and leaving around 6,000 people homeless in the southern Attapeu province, according to the Lao News Agency.
The Vientiane Times on Wednesday reported that the Sanamxay district Governor Bounhom Phommasane said 2,851 people had been rescued as of Wednesday morning, adding that more than 3,000 “require rescue” from trees and house roofs.
Video clips and photos posted on social media by local residents showed floodwater reaching ceilings, forcing villagers and animals to seek shelter on rooftops.
“It happened quickly, we had little time to prepare ourselves,” Joo Hinla, 68, from one of the worst-hit villages of Ban Hin Lath, said from a warehouse crammed with more than 700 displaced people in a neighboring province.
“All of the houses in my village are under water. Four of my family are missing, we don’t know about their fate yet,” Joo said.
Continued heavy rain and strong winds forecast for the area could hinder rescue efforts, and risks from flooding persisted in the region. The Vientiane Times reported the mountainous area is only accessible by helicopter and flat-bottomed boats, with roads badly damaged by the flash flooding or completely washed away.
Power project
Provincial authorities issued a call for emergency aid of clothing, food, drinking water, medicine, cash and other items from the “party, government organizations, business community, officials, police and military forces and people of all strata”.
The dam that collapsed is part of the hydroelectric Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy power project, a joint venture which is also known as PNPC.
On the PNPC’s official website, it said a number of companies are involved in the project, including SK Engineering & Construction and Korea Western Power from the Republic of Korea and Thailand’s Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding.
According to the Yonhap News Agency, 53 of the ROK nationals were taking part in the construction and were evacuated in advance of the collapse. The SK E&C has also sent its president to Laos and set up an emergency team in Seoul.
The ROK’s presidential office said on Wednesday that President Moon Jae-in had ordered an emergency relief team to help with the disaster. It said the government planned to dispatch a sevenmember advance team to Laos on Thursday while sending more rescue workers and medical staff after consulting with the Lao government.
The $1 billion project encompassing several river basins in a remote corner of southeastern Laos is the first hydroelectric dam invested in by the ROK.
The dam was due to begin operating in 2019, with 90 percent of the power generated going to Thailand.
Xinhua, Reuters and AFP contributed to this story.