This year, seasonal monsoonal rains are drenching Laos, causing natural disasters in several provinces. What are those provinces, and how has flooding affected them?
Provinces across Laos, particularly northern provinces, have suffered from flooding due to the tropical storms that continue to bring more rain and damage to much of the country. The provinces of Houaphanh, Bokeo, Luang Prabang, Oudomxay, and Phongsaly have been hit particularly hard.
Houaphanh
Houses, livestock, and possessions belonging to residents in Houaphanh’s Xiangkho District were carried away with floodwaters, while landslides destroyed houses and damaged roads from 25 to 26 August.
Authorities in the district have examined the damage and provided emergency assistance for residents.
Bokeo
According to the Bokeo Department of Labor and Social Welfare, 13 villages in Meung District were affected by flooding, landslides, collapsed roads, and collapsed electric power poles, with some villages experiencing power outages.
Luang Prabang
In Luang Prabang, floodwaters inundated houses, roads, and bridges connecting villages in Nam Bak district. The floods also damaged the majority of the district’s agricultural areas.
Oudomxay
Mr. Bounkhong Lachiamphone, Governor of Oudomxay, monitored the flooding situation in some districts of the province on 26 August and discovered that some roads and electric systems were completely out of service, affecting phone signals.
The governor stated that immediate assistance would be provided to flood-affected families in the form of food and shelter.
District governor of Lar District, Mr. Humphan Bupphakham, reported on 28 August that the main road, route 2E between Xai District and La District, still remains inaccessible.
Phongsaly
On 27 August, provincial authorities surveyed the damage from flooding and estimated that damages amounted to over LAK 5 billion in four villages with 97 families affected by the floods.
