VietNamNet Bridge – Dozens of cave-ins have been reported along river banks and the seafront in the southernmost province of Ca Mau.

To date, a total of 27 waterfront locations in the province have lost land and homes.

They are concentrated in the three districts of Dam Doi, Nam Can and Ngoc Hien along a 40km stretch of river banks.

Eight of the sites have been classified as critical. A total of 1,047 households are reportedly under threat, Nguyen Long Hoai, director of the Ca Mau Irrigation Department told Lao Dong (Labour) newspaper.

Hoai blamed the cave-ins on fierce flows of water and the waves created by large, motorised river boats.

"Provincial authorities need to urgently build a resettlement area to accommodate 200 households from Cho Ca Nay where people's lives are threatened by cave-ins," he said.

Hoai estimated that from the start of this year, 700 square metres of land had crumbled into rivers across the province, causing losses of VND428 million (US$19,000).

The worst problem was in the district of Nam Can, where cave-ins and erosions had taken away 1,500 sq.m of fish ponds, one house and 150 sq.m of arable land.

A resident in Kinh Ba Village in Ngoc Hien District, Le Chi Hang, told the newspaper that his property had been hit by river cave-ins three times.

"Over the past years, I have been living with worry and fear," he said. "I cannot sleep soundly at night because I have to go out to check for erosion."

Tang Thien Tinh, vice head of Ngoc Hien District's agriculture and rural development division, said erosions and cave-ins usually happened at night so people were caught off guard. Their property disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Hien said last year 10 cave-ins pulled 32 houses into the river and damaged another 200.

In 2014, the district was also hit by rising sea water, which ruined 3,000 hectares of fish ponds and arable land, causing losses of VND3.5 billion (US$161,000).

VNS