In the aftermath of Storm Yagi, many rice fields and crops in Soc Son district, Hanoi, were devastated by rising floodwaters from the Cau and Ca Lo rivers, leaving large swathes of farmland submerged and destroyed.

According to statistics from the People’s Committee of Soc Son district, 230 hectares of rice fields were inundated and flattened by the storm and subsequent flooding. The villages hardest hit were Hoa Binh and An Lac in Trung Gia commune.

An Lac village alone saw 110 hectares of rice submerged, with an additional 10 hectares knocked over. In areas where the waters have receded, the rice stalks have turned yellow due to prolonged exposure to water, making them unsalvageable. Farmers have no choice but to cut down and treat the fields with lime in preparation for the next growing season.

For farmers like Do Van Trung from An Lac, the damage is devastating. His family’s 3,600 square meters of rice, which were just beginning to flower, are now flattened and dead after days of flooding. “In other parts of the district, people can still salvage some of their crops, but here in our village, we can’t harvest anything,” Trung lamented.

In addition to the ruined fields, a stretch of road between the fields and the riverbank has been heavily eroded, and 55 meters of embankment separating the river from the fields have collapsed and are yet to be repaired.

The flood also wiped out fruit trees in Ta Thi Chau’s orchard, where water still hasn’t fully receded, causing an estimated loss of nearly VND 200 million. As the most severely affected area in Soc Son district, An Lac's vegetable gardens were also destroyed. Floodwaters, brought on by Typhoon Yagi, entered the homes of 430 households in the village.

At a playground, the grass had withered, and the field was covered in mud.

Mud still coats many roads in the village, leaving thick, cracked layers across paths. With parts of the village still underwater, officials have yet to complete a full damage assessment.

Thach Thao