A section of Cà Mau Province’s western sea dyke. The dyke is eroded in many areas, threatening the safety of local households and farming production inside the dyke. — VNA/VNS Photo Huỳnh Anh

CÀ MAU — The southernmost province of Cà Mau has taken measures to protect its western 108km long sea dyke that is in danger of collapsing because of erosion, according to the province’s Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, Search and Rescue.

In the last few days, erosion occurred in four sections, including three extremely dangerous eroded sections with a total length of nearly 3,000 metres.

One eroded section is a 957 metre long area in U Minh District’s Khánh Tiến Commune. The eroded section has a mangrove forest belt of 1-5 metres and no mangrove forest belt in some sites.

The province is using rocks to build an embankment for the eroded section in Khánh Tiến, but the construction faces problems because of inclement weather and continuing erosion in the section.

Strong waves, heavy rains and high tides have caused the sea water to overflow the dyke on August 3, causing erosion in many sections.

Nguyễn Long Hoai, head of the Steering Committee Office, said the erosion of the dyke will affect directly 26,000 households living along the coast and 90,000ha of farming areas.

However, the province only has funds for erosion prevention projects on 1,430 metres of eroded sections, he said.

On Thursday (August 6), Nguyễn Tiến Hải, secretary of the province’s Party Committee and chairman of the province’s People’s Committee, inspected the dyke’s erosion in U Minh and Trần Văn Thời districts.

He told the contractors of erosion prevention projects to speed up construction to protect the lives and production of households living inside the dyke.

Local authorities should enhance awareness of households in coastal areas about natural disasters and dyke protection as well as take proactive measures to prevent and mitigate the damage of natural disasters, he said.

“The province has entered the rainy and storm season, but coastal erosion is occurring rapidly."

In the dyke’s eroded sections, local authorities have mobilised human forces and tools to protect the dyke, but heavy rains and strong winds have made it difficult to solve eroded sections, he said.

Hải said the province will ask the Government for an urgent solution to dyke protection.

If there is no prompt solution, the dyke faces a high risk of collapse in the rainy season, he said. — VNS