Thousands of people in Laos are still waiting for help after the dam

Authorities in Laos have now confirmed the death of nineteen people after the breakthrough of a dam under construction. That's what the local media reports. According to the governor of the affected area, 2,851 people have been saved, but more than 3,000 people are waiting for help.

The dam in southeastern Laos was still under construction and collapsed Monday night. Five billion cubic meters of water passed through the dam. Six villages in the region were affected: more than 6,600 people lost their homes according to local media.

The day before yesterday, the construction company building the dam reported that something was wrong with the dam. Part of a small dam was washed away. The exact cause of the accident is not yet clear.

The company attempted to repair the smaller dam, but when this proved impossible, the evacuation of villages in the area began. "Apparently, it did not happen fast enough," said correspondent Michel Maas in the newspaper NOS Radio 1 Journaal .

Difficult area

Emergency services continue today with rescue in the area. "It's a tough area," says Maas. "It's very mountainous and the mountains are very wooded, it's a jungle." The only road to the area is a road built for dam construction.

It can be assumed that the heavy rains caused the disaster. During the last period, three times more rain water fell than usual, says Maas. "There has been a lot of floods, the water pressure has come on the dam and the dam has been broken."

This is a gigantic 1,600 meter long dam that had to produce more than 400 megawatts of electricity a year. The water behind it measured more than 70 meters high. About 10% of the electricity was for local use, the rest was destined for export to Thailand. Laos had about $ 33 billion in revenue a year

Worries

Laos is a one-party socialist state and one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia. The country wants to become the "battery" of Southeast Asia and earn a lot of money by selling electricity abroad.

Concerns about the safety of dams in the country are worrisome. In September, a dam also broke through in the north-east of the country.