Overcoming the difficulties after the storm and flood, life will soon stabilize again and many lands will revive.
The wind began to blow hard, and a light rain fell. Mr. Loan had just returned from the field and looked out at the wind and rain, unable to sit still. In the kitchen, his wife was busily preparing dinner.
- You cook rice, I'll go out for a moment.
Mrs. Mien worriedly asked:
- Where are you going in this heavy rain and wind? Aren't you tired enough from being out in the fields all day? You should remember that you're getting old, you're not like you were when you were young.
Mr. Loan looked worried:
- I just went to check the plants in the garden. Even though I'm not young anymore, I still have to fight the storm. I'm a real farmer, I've faced storms and floods for years, so it's no surprise.
Then Mr. Loan jumped up, put on his raincoat, and hurried out to the garden.
Mr. Loan has always been known as an active member of the village's community activities. This time, he was assigned by the village to join the storm and flood prevention force and to patrol and guard. In recent days, his team and the village's departments, branches and organizations have met to deploy and deal with storm No. 3 as well as the floods that occurred after the storm.
Mr. Loan and his wife have only one son, Hoa, who is a border guard working in Lao Cai. Hearing that the storm was about to hit his hometown, over the past few days, Hoa has been calling home to tell his parents and wife to prepare carefully for the storm. He said that the unit up here is on duty 24/7 to help people cope with storms and floods. Huong, Hoa's wife, is a teacher at the commune's secondary school. Today, Huong is also working with the teachers to reinforce the school and hasn't returned yet. Huong and Hoa got married last year. Mr. and Mrs. Loan still hope to have a grandchild soon.
Although for the past few days, Mr. and Mrs. Mien have tied each grapefruit and sapodilla tree, supported each banana bunch, trimmed longan and mango trees, etc., they are still impatient. It is forecasted that storm number 3 will make landfall this time, with the eye of the storm passing through Hai Duong province with very strong winds. Having experienced many terrible storms in his life, he understands better than anyone the terrible devastation it can cause.
The next afternoon, the rain poured down. In response to the unusual developments of the storm, Mr. Loan and the flood and storm prevention force were on duty at the village cultural house from early morning. The strong wind caused the rows of casuarina trees on the main road of the village to fall down.
Mr. Loan called to tell Mrs. Mien. But he knew that he had to tell her that, but seeing the storm raging, Mrs. Mien would definitely rush out to the garden.
The storm blew down the banana garden in front of the house. Grapefruits fell and rolled on the ground. An old mango tree was uprooted and the entire surrounding wall collapsed.
Mr. Loan's family reunion dinner after the storm was quite quiet. Everyone ate quickly, then went about their business. Mrs. Mien sat there, looking blankly at the devastated garden, worriedly saying:
- I wonder if the area where Hoa's unit is stationed is affected?
*
After sweeping through the North, Yagi entered the Northwest mountains, causing heavy rain. In Lao Cai, flash floods quickly appeared in many areas. The flash floods buried the entire Nu Village, leaving many people dead and missing. Along with the flash floods, nearly a hundred highland villages in Lao Cai were isolated by the floods.
Receiving preliminary information that Ta Phin Chai village was isolated by floodwaters and that some people were swept away, the border guard station where Hoa was stationed held an urgent meeting to deploy rescue work.
While it was still dark, Hoa and nearly twenty officers and soldiers of the unit brought necessary vehicles and tools to Ta Phin Chai village, which had been isolated by floodwaters.
From the border post to Ta Phin Chai village, we had to travel more than 10 km. It was raining and the road was flooded, so Hoa and the officers and soldiers had to walk through many landslides on the mountain road. When they reached the village, a terrifying scene appeared before their eyes. A large area of the mountainside behind them had collapsed, burying several roofs. The entire village was surrounded by floodwaters.
- Comrades, quickly disperse to save people and victims. No matter how difficult it is, we must evacuate people to safety.
- Yes!
Following the order from Chief Quang, the soldiers divided into groups to spread out throughout the village to rescue people. Hoa's group was ordered to go towards the stream to help the trapped people.
- Soldiers, save us. Save us.
The screams made Hoa and the soldiers in the search team by the stream stop. On the other side, four people were isolated in the middle of the rushing water. Between life and death, the four people in distress were clinging to bushes and struggling in the flood water. Hoa and the soldiers threw ropes for the victims to hold on to, swam out to help them to shore, and even used plastic cans as buoys, but all were unsuccessful because the flood water rose high and flowed strongly. In just a moment, the flood water was over their heads, flowing rapidly, leaving everyone exhausted.
- Everyone please help me save people.
Faced with the emergency, Hoa tied one end of the rope to the tree trunk, then jumped to the edge of the rushing water and threw the other end of the rope to the inflated inner tube for the victims. Between life and death, the victims let go of the tree and clung to the inner tube. Immediately, Hoa and the soldiers held on to the rope tightly and struggled to pull. The floodwaters seemed to want to drag the whole group down into the stream. The soldiers' hands pulling the rope were already bleeding.
Mr. Luong Van Nuong, a local resident, after being rescued, kept holding Hoa's hand tightly, his voice choked with emotion:
- Thank you soldiers for saving us.
- You have done very well, comrades - Commander Quang firmly held Hoa's hand and each soldier's hand. As you know, the flash flood has buried the entire Nu Village, leaving many people dead and missing. Currently, the army and functional forces are still organizing the search. Our unit has been ordered to send reinforcements to Nu Village to coordinate with other army units to find the missing victims. Are you ready to go, comrades?
- Ready. Ready.
*
The flood came with the rain. It was as if all the water in the East Sea was poured onto the mainland. Mr. Loan and the flood and storm prevention force patrolled, guarded, and protected the dike incident day and night. Because the flood on the Thai Binh River rose quickly, the district requested that localities urgently harvest vegetables outside the dike, and secure fish cages on the river. After helping people overcome the consequences of the storm, the army unit now rushed to help people harvest watermelons, corn, etc. on the riverbank, tie up fish cages, and guard the dike.
After many sleepless nights, Mr. Loan's eyes were dark. However, he and everyone in the storm and flood prevention force and the patrol and guard force still divided themselves to guard each important area day and night to search for the extrusion and bubbling veins. The position that Mr. Loan was guarding tonight was a spot where a murky area of water appeared in the afternoon. This could very well be a hidden incident that had not yet been discovered. At midnight, the river water continued to rise. His eyes wanted to close tightly after many sleepless nights, but Mr. Loan's flashlight was still focused on the grass with the murky puddle. Suddenly "gurgle"... "gurgle"... then "swish"... A part of the dike collapsed, revealing a dark brown area mixed with bubbling veins.
- Report a leak. Report a leak.
Mr. Loan's voice echoed far away with the sound of the alarm. The dike protection force rushed to Mr. Loan with hoes, shovels and sacks.
- Forces urgently protect the dike.
Following the commander’s instructions, each bag of soil was quickly filled into the sack. Mr. Loan and the dike protection force and the soldiers bent down, shouldering the bags of soil and carrying them down to the landslide. More than an hour later, the entire landslide had been reinforced with sturdy bags of soil.
After a night of working on the dike, this morning, Mr. Loan took the opportunity to go home. When her husband returned, Mrs. Mien was flustered:
- Oh, you're back. Please help me pack up my things and run away from the flood. People say that the heavy rain has caused the water level in many rivers and streams in the North to rise rapidly. In the village, people have already moved their belongings and evacuated the elderly and children.
Mr. Loan was surprised:
- Where did you and everyone hear that nonsense?
Mrs. Mien was upset:
- You are known as a dyke guard but you know nothing. People are talking about it all over the internet. This morning, people rushed to buy things and the prices skyrocketed. I had to push my way through to buy a few things. People also said that there were dyke breaks in the city and some neighboring districts.
Mr. Loan shook his head:
- Oh my gosh. That's all false information. People need to stay updated and follow the flood situation from official sources.
Just then, Huong came home from work. There were two big carps hanging on the car. Seeing her parents-in-law talking, Huong also joined in:
- Dad, you're right. It's all rumors and false information. The provincial police have summoned and dealt with a number of people who spread false rumors about floods and dike breaks.
Mrs. Mien breathed a sigh of relief:
- Then I'm relieved.
Huong put the two fish down in the basket her mother-in-law had just brought out and said:
- Brother Hoa has contacted me. He told me to tell my parents that he and everyone in the unit are safe. His unit is sending reinforcements to Lang Nu to coordinate with other army units to search for missing victims and bring food through the forest to help the villages still isolated by the flood.
Mrs. Mien breathed a sigh of relief:
- Then I'm relieved. What about this fish? Each one weighs about 5 kilos. There are only three of us in the family, why did you buy so much?
Huong holds her mother's hand:
- This fish was bought by our school's teachers to help farmers whose fish cages were affected by the storm.
Mr. Loan expressed:
- That is the tradition of Vietnamese people. Luckily, Hoa brought the news of safety. The flood receded, life will gradually stabilize. In no time, the fields will be green again. This time, Hoa took a leave from work, and his grandparents only hoped to have a grandchild to hold soon.
Mr. Loan looked into the distance and wished the sky would always be peaceful like the days without storms or wind.
DINH NGOC HUNG