Why are there dozens of ‘death pits’ in one commune?

A sinkhole is deeply embedded in the foundation of a house in Chau Hong commune, Quy Hop district, Nghe An – Photo: DOAN HOA

On the afternoon of June 2, Mr. Ho Van Tu – head of the North Central Region Geological Federation, said that this unit is surveying, evaluating and making some initial judgments about the cause of the appearance of tens of thousands of people.pit of death” in Chau Hong commune, Quy Hop district, Nghe An province is interested in public opinion.

According to Mr. Tu, many previous geological studies showed that the whole Quy Hop district was like a closed valley, surrounded by high mountains. The geological history of this region has a very complex structure.

Chau Hong commune area is located on a deep fault structure zone named “Ngoc Hat – Long Quen”, extending nearly 100km from Quy Hop district up to Que Phong district (Nghe An).

In this area, from 1981-1989, the Soviet Union cooperated with Vietnam to conduct geological exploration on the entire area in Chau Hong commune for tin ore and placer routes.

This is also the area where the carts are located (is a typical weathering phenomenon of limestone mountains eroded by water – PV) There is an underground water source flowing from Chau Hong commune to Chau Quang commune (Quy Hop district) for about 20-25km.

From 2021, subsidence begins to occur in Chau Hong commune. Especially in the past two months, this situation happened more, more often and on a larger scale. This is a period of heavy rainfall, leading to a sudden rise in surface water that will open up the caves caster faster.

According to the survey, sinkholes are distributed individually, in many locations in Chau Hong commune, cracking many houses and constructions.

A corner of Chau Hong commune, Quy Hop district, Nghe An seen from above. This is a locality with 11 businesses exploiting tin ore and stone, considered the “mineral capital” in Quy Hop district – Photo: DOAN HOA

“The cause of subsidence, the appearance of ‘death pits’ is due to the lowering of the groundwater level in the ground. When the karst caves are connected, the aquifer will naturally drop. However, mineral exploitation has must be the cause of the low ground water level or no longer needs to be studied,” Mr. Tu said.

Previously, on May 29, at a dialogue with the people and working with departments and localities, Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Trung requested a final report on the cause of subsidence in Chau Hong commune first. July 31; ensure the safety of property and people’s lives.

Like Youth Online Information, since 2019 in Chau Hong commune, Quy Hop district, Nghe An, there has been a situation of land subsidence and water wells. Up to now, the commune has 299 wells with dry bottom, 191 houses cracked, dozens of “death pits”.

The continuous “death pit” appearing in Chau Hong commune as well as the phenomenon of dry wells and cracked houses made people worried and insecure.