Volunteers sort, pack and log donated supplies at a relief collection point at Hà Nội's Xuân Diệu Road. — VNA/VNS Photos Vũ Quang

HÀ NỘI — At dawn in Thiết Úng village, the courtyard of Đỗ Thị Bích Diệp’s family home was already thick with steam rising from giant boiling pots.

Inside the pots were hundreds of chưng cakes as women from Hà Nội's Thư Lâm Commune took turns tending the fires.

Within two days, nearly 1,000 cakes had been cooked and prepared for families in Đắk Lắk Province battered by severe flooding.

“We just wanted to send something warm, something that feels like home,” Diệp said.

“People there have lost so much. Chưng cakes are small, but they carry our thoughts.”

Her courtyard became a hive of activity with women rinsing green beans, others slicing pork, and groups of volunteers carefully stacking finished cakes into baskets to cool.

Many of these cakes are set to travel hundreds of kilometres south, arriving as both nourishment and a message that people in the capital were thinking of them. It was a simple gesture, but one that captured the spirit now sweeping across Hà Nội.

Over recent days, the city has witnessed an extraordinary mobilisation of compassion, with residents of every age and background contributing what they can to help communities in central Việt Nam recover from torrential rains and landslides. Official and makeshift collection points have sprung to life, as people form quiet, steady lines to drop off boxes of goods or lend a hand to sort donations.

People of all ages in Hà Nội come together to support communities in the central region.

A surge of support

Across Hà Nội, the Việt Nam Fatherland Front at all levels has launched large-scale appeals in response to the Central Committee’s nationwide call. Agencies, public offices and enterprises were urged to donate at least one day’s salary to the city’s relief fund.

By the second day, contributions had flowed steadily enough that trucks began departing at regular intervals loaded with essential supplies.

At 102 Xuân Diệu Road, a steady stream of residents arrived with whatever they could carry.

Bags of rice, packets of candles, bottles of water, folded clothing and boxes of instant noodles stacked taller than some of the children who came to help. Volunteers moved in a synchronised rhythm – receiving, sorting, counting and loading.

Among them was Nguyễn Thùy Liên of Hồng Hà Ward, who arrived with a bundle of clothing and several bags of food. She had spent the previous night watching images of families clinging to rooftops or wading through waist-high waters.

“It’s heartbreaking,” she said. “I cannot go there myself, but I can trust the volunteers to bring this to the right place.”

Elsewhere, in Phú Thượng Ward, Nguyễn Thị Việt Nga stacked boxes, writing with a marker pen on each box to indicate whether it held dry food, milk, torches or raincoats.

“Each box feels like a message of encouragement,” she said. “You can feel that people packed these items with care.”

Some of the most dynamic scenes have unfolded at informal stations created by residents themselves. In alleys, pavements and neighbourhood courtyards, several folding tables, a few cardboard signs and someone willing to stand in the cold have been enough to begin a small relief hub.

Along Giải Phóng Road, just outside the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion, donation tables were crowded throughout the day. Relatives of patients, staff from nearby clinics and passers-by paused to set down bottles of water or freshly purchased raincoats.

In the evening, Thanh Xuân Ward households brought boxes directly to a community point in Nguyễn Xiển alley. One woman arrived carrying a bundle nearly larger than herself, explaining simply, “If we wait until tomorrow, it might be too late for someone.”

Volunteers from the Cầu Giấy – Hoàng Quốc Việt charity clubs worked in shifts, receiving items, inspecting expiry dates, checking product origins, and labelling boxes with meticulous care.

“We want everything to be easy to distribute once it reaches the flood zones,” a young member said while sealing a carton of tinned food.

Members of Hà Nội’s 'Zero-đồng vehicle team' are busy receiving donations at the collection point in Xuân Đỉnh Ward.

Businesses join hands

Local businesses have rallied quickly. Mini-supermarkets donated cartons of bottled water and quality raincoats; roadside eateries contributed fresh bread and dry rations; and private shops supplied toiletries and blankets. Several small transport firms offered their trucks free of charge, collecting donations from multiple neighbourhoods and delivering them to central warehouses.

Hà Nội's 'Zero-đồng vehicle team' has been one of the most visible groups on the move.

At the cultural house of residential group No 6 in Xuân Đỉnh Ward, team leader Lỗ Minh Tuấn said they had raised around VNĐ140 million (over US$5,300). With the funds, they purchased additional food and dry goods to be sent to Tuy Hòa Ward in Đắk Lắk Province.

“Every hour, someone new shows up with something to give,” he said, adding that a 10-tonne truck is expected to depart with a full load to Tuy Hòa.

In many neighbourhoods, dozens of boxes are stacked high by midday. Volunteers, mostly young people, record every item to ensure full accountability before loading the goods onto vehicles. The first trucks from Hà Nội have already departed for Khánh Hòa, Phú Yên, and parts of the Central Highlands.

If there is a backbone to Hà Nội’s relief mobilisation, it is the network of Women’s Union chapters across the city.

In Thanh Liệt Ward, members from residential groups No 9 and 10 spent several long nights gathering and packing goods worth VNĐ40 million. Their cartons contained 1,000kg of rice, hundreds of fresh bread rolls, water, milk, toothpaste, seasoning and clothing. Earlier in the month, they had collected essential goods worth VNĐ19.5 million for flood-hit central provinces.

In Hoàn Kiếm Ward, Women’s Union members assembled more than 300kg of clothing and bedding to support children in Tuyên Quang Province and families in the central region. The total value of the donation round reached more than VNĐ50 million.

In Ngọc Hà Ward, a single-day appeal raised VNĐ24.7 million ($940), which was sent directly to the Hà Nội Fatherland Front’s Relief Fund.

As Hà Nội continues its push to support flood-stricken regions, its streets have become scenes of quiet generosity with children carrying bags of instant noodles, elderly residents folding donated clothing with care, volunteers cycling across neighbourhoods to collect last-minute contributions.

From the thousand chưng cakes steaming in Diệp’s courtyard to the 10-tonne trucks heading south, the story remains the same: Hà Nội steps up whenever its people are hurting. — VNS

Many individuals, families, businesses and organisations have brought donations directly to relief collection points.