Floods, landslides wreak havoc in Laos

Vientiane: Many parts of Laos have been affected by flooding and landslides, with farmland, residences and other property damaged following several days of rainfall.

Several villages of Yommalath district in Khammuan province, some 250 km southeast of the Lao capital Vientiane, have been affected by flooding after the Xebangfai River overflowed following several days of heavy rainfall, Lao national TV reported on Wednesday.

Many villages and crop fields were experiencing widespread flooding, as a tropical depression passed through the area, bringing large amounts of rain.

Local authorities in the province warned that the river was still rising and the level was approaching the warning mark, so there could be more flooding in the coming days, Xinhua news agency reported.

In Luang Prabang province, some 220 km north of Vientiane, local authorities were helping residents clean up their homes and clearing blocked roads after severe flooding and landslides hit the province.

The floods submerged roads, crop fields and vehicles, and also put electricity and gravity-fed water systems out of use.

Local residents had been instructed to move to safer locations on higher ground, according to the report.

Meanwhile, almost 40 households in Xay district in Oudomxay province, some 400 km north of Vientiane, were affected by flooding following heavy rainfall.

The Lao Ministry of Energy and Mines has instructed hydropower operators nationwide to ensure dam safety during the rainy monsoon season in the Southeast Asian country.

The operators of hydropower plants are asked to comply with emergency response plans and related legislations.

Villages along the Mekong River and its main tributaries in Laos have been warned to be alert for rising water levels after days of rain across Laos, with people in low-lying areas advised to be prepared for floods, the weather bureau said on Wednesday.