Laos dam water floods Vietnam rice fields

FLOODS from a burst dam in Laos have inundated thousands of hectares of paddy fields in Vietnam’s rice-growing Mekong Delta, officials said yesterday, although the damage is limited and not expected to affect the country’s export crop.

A saddle dam that was part of Laos’ US$1.2 billion Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydropower project collapsed last week, sending torrents of water crashing into neighboring villages.

At least 11 people were killed in the accident, and a further 120 people are still missing, the state-run Vientiane Times in Laos reported yesterday.

“The flood water is hampering the ongoing harvest of the summer-autumn rice crop in some areas, especially in Dong Thap, Long An and An Giang provinces,” said Tran Xuan Dinh, deputy head of the Department of Crop Production under Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Mekong Delta is the largest rice-growing area in Vietnam, which is the world’s third-largest rice exporter after India and Thailand.

The water level in the Mekong Delta region has risen by 7-10 centimeters since the dam burst, Dinh said.

Although heavy rains and excess waters from the dam in Laos have damaged crops, the impact of the floods will not significantly impact rice production, said Nguyen Si Lam, deputy director of An Giang province’s agricultural department.