Dozens of Caesareans Delayed in Hanoi Due to Water Supply Pipeline Break

The breakage of a pipeline that supplies water to a part of the Vietnamese capital has seriously affected the medical operations of the Hanoi Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, with about 20 caesareans delayed. The incident happened when the pipeline that transmits clean water from the Da River Water Plant in the northern province of Hoa Binh to Hanoi broke on September 26, Dr. Nguyen Duy Anh, director of the hospital, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Thursday. This is the 15th time that the pipeline has broken since 2012, and in all these 15 instances of ruptures, the infirmary had no running water for use, Dr. Anh said. The hospital had to use water from its reservoir of 400m³, and on September 29 afternoon, the source ran out. The sudden loss of water supply has seriously affected the hospital’s operations and patients as well as their relatives. The clinic has had to delay all planned caesarean surgeries and performed operations only in emergencies, Dr. Anh said. Specifically, the hospital has postponed about 20 caesareans and refused to conduct gynecological operations due to the lack of water over the past week, the director said. There is no water at all in daytime, and it drips at night,” Le Thi My, who takes care of her daughter giving birth at the hospital, said. “We must reserve the running water collected at night for daily use. As the stored water is not enough, we had to even use bottled drinking water to flush the toilet.” Nguyen Van Thao, who looks after her wife giving birth at the hospital, said that the caesarean operation planned for his wife has had to be postponed for three times due to water shortages, VietNamNet reported. Thao added that he has not bathed for several days because of the lack of water. A representative of the Dong Da Fresh Water Trading Enterprise, under the Hanoi Clean Water Company, which uses water from the Da River Water Plant to supply to the capital, said the enterprise had sent five water trucks to the area to directly pump water to the hospital, but failed to meet its great demand. The hospital needs 300-400m³ of water per day for normal operations, Dr. Anh said. “The hospital has more than 1,000 staff members, who every day serve about 600 in-patients and 400 newborns, and receive around 1,000 people who come for examinations,” Dr. Anh said. “About 250 births are given and 150-170 gynecological surgeries are carried out per day.” Dr. Anh said water began dripping into the hospital’s tanks on Wednesday, which provided just enough supply for use until the end of Thursday. The rupture of the pipeline has also affected the 19-8 Hospital and 70,000 households in Bac Tu Liem, Nam Tu Liem, Ha Dong and Dong Da Districts, authorities reported. A project to build a water plant with a capacity of 300,000m³ per day will kick off this month in Dan Phuong District, deputy chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Quoc Hung said, adding that the plant is expected to be completed in two years. In addition, the capacity of the Bac Thang Long-Van Tri Water Plant will be increased by 30,000m³ per day, Hung said. Meanwhile, a 20km long emergency pipeline is being built to transmit clean water from the Da River Water Plant to the Vietnam National Convention Center in the capital to ease the pressure on pipeline No. 1 being used for the same purpose, Hung added. (Tuoi Tre – Youth Oct 2)