Clean Water back in Parts of Hanoi amid Ongoing Crisis

Two men have been arrested accused of dumping oil into a river that caused thousands of homes to be without clean water. Almost a quarter of a million people were affected by the problems which occurred in Hanoi's Thanh Xuan District this week. Major Nguyen Huu Duc, deputy director of the provincial police said the men arrested are Nguyen Chuong Dai from Bac Ninh Province and Hoang Van Thai from Lang Son Province. The police also seized a car and are searching for the third suspect. According to the police, on October 8, the three carried waste in two cars and dumped it to the area around Phuc Tien Commune, Ky Son District before fleeing. Now many homes have clean water again, municipal authorities announced on Thursday evening, hours after police confirmed an investigation into the ongoing water crisis that has affected some 700,000 people. In a notice released by the Hanoi People’s Committee, another water provider in the capital city - the Hanoi Clean Water Ltd. Co – has directed its water supply from the Duong River Plant and other underground water facilities to eight wards affected by the crisis. They included Dai Kim, Dinh Dong, Thinh Liet, Hoang Liet, Thanh Xuan Nam, Kim Giang and part of Khuong Dinh ward. Households located along Nguyen Trai Road, starting from the Chien Thang Crossroad to Nguyen Trai Crossroad, will also have clean water again following days of drought. The total amount of water provided stands at about 60,000 cubic metres a day and night. People in those areas can now use tap water for drinking, cooking and other purposes, the city People’s Committee said. The Hanoi Clean Water company will continue sending free water tank trucks to other affected areas on demand. Meanwhile, police have launched an investigation into the oil dumping which is believed to have caused the water crisis in the capital, Hoa Binh authorities told reporters on Thursday afternoon. Waste oil was found illegally discarded in a creek in the Phu Minh Commune in Ky Son District, which then spread into the adjacent Tram stream flowing directly into the Dam Bai reservoir. The reservoir is used to store water for the Da River water plant. According to Hoa Binh People's Committee, Ky Son District police would look into the case as an environmental pollution crime. The biggest water crisis Hanoi has witnessed in decades began on October 10 when residents in southwestern districts of the capital city detected a strange, irritating smell like melted plastic or oil in their tap water. Despite repeated assurances from the Da River water plant that the water met safety standards, it was revealed on Tuesday that tests found the amount of styrene in the tap water higher than allowed. Hanoi authorities warned residents in the affected areas to refrain from drinking and cooking with tap water which was allegedly polluted with oil dumped nearby the water source for the plant. More than a week after the crisis first started, thousands of Hanoians were still living without clean water. They had to rely on bottled water and water tank trucks which brought clean water from other plants. Nam Ti Liem and Thanh Xuan districts were affected the worst as the Da River water plant is the main water provider in the areas. Parts of Bac Tu Liem, Cau Giay, Hoang Mai, Ha Dong, and Thanh Tri districts have also been affected. Residents living in the Dai Kim Ward are still facing a water shortage. On Thursday night, the management board of the building where they live arranged for delivery of clean water – a regular sight throughout most of the week. They have been told officials are doing all they can to find a new source of water quickly. Le Thi Lien, 57, says she is worried about bathing her grandchildren. “Water in our homes smells like burnt plastic, so we’ve been getting water from other places for a few days,” she said. “Now the building is handing out water here, so I’m taking it. “I come here to get water twice a day and use it until the next day. Just for drinking and cooking, for washing we still have to use tap water in our homes. “I don’t dare to use much tap water to bathe my grandchildren. Just a little, then rinse her off with this water. I don’t dare to use much tap water. It feels uncomfortable.” For most of this week, the management board of Dai Kim Building have been arranging for deliveries to service those without water. (Vietnam News)