VIENTIANE, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of people across Laos have been affected by flooding and landslides as a result of continuous heavy rain, which caused havoc in several parts of the country.
Laophattana Daily News on Monday quoted Governor of Khammuan province Vanxay Phongsavanh as saying that torrential rains, which started on July 27, have caused widespread floods, destroyed homes and farms, and washed away roads and other infrastructure.
Khounkham district in Khammuan province, some 250 km southeast of Lao capital Vientiane, has been hit by heavy floods, and more than 12,000 people living in 14 villages, or almost half the population in the district, have been affected by the flooding.
In the Hinboun district, more than 180 houses and hundreds of hectares of farmlands in four villages have been impacted by the floods. Several roads were cut off, and the electricity and telecommunication networks were disrupted by the floods, according to the report.
In addition, heavy rains over the past few days have caused landslides along a stretch of National Highway No. 8 between Khoun district in Khammuan province and Bolikhamxay province, with more than 80 people and about 90 vehicles trapped on the highway.
Days of torrential rain have also caused landslides blocking roads in districts of northern Laos' Luang Prabang province. Relevant authorities are making efforts to restore normal traffic, the Public Works and Transport Office of Phonxay district under the Lao Ministry of Public Works and Transport reported on Monday.
The Lao Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources released a notice on Monday, advising citizens across the country to monitor the weather and be on alert for possible flash floods and landslides.
The rain will continue to fall across the country, causing rivers to further rise and overflow.
Meanwhile, hundreds of hectares of farmland and thousands of families in Savannakhet province have been affected by the floods.
In Atsaphone district, 28 villages have been affected by flooding, which has also inundated more than 1,300 hectares of farmland. In Atsaphangthong district, more than 1,400 households in 19 villages were affected, with at least 2,900 hectares of farmland also submerged.
Lao Deputy Minister and Deputy Chairman of the National Disaster Management Committee, Khambay Khatthiya, and representatives of relevant authorities on Sunday launched a ceremony on the delivery of relief items to the people affected by flooding in the provinces of Bolikhamxay, Khammuan and Savannakhet. ■
