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BANGKOK – Massive floods of a hydroelectric dam built in southern Laos have left several dead and hundreds of missing, media reported Tuesday. Rescue efforts were underway as senior government officials rushed to the site and public calls were made for help.
The Xepian-Xe Nam Noy hydroelectric dam in Attapeu province collapsed on Monday night. the water that washed away homes, flooded villages and left more than 6,600 people homeless.
A subsequent report on the website of the Vientiane Times newspaper, however, stated that the water had overflowed the dam rather than bursting. He said the dam could collapse, and the rain and strong winds expected for the next few days could worsen the situation.
Two people were confirmed Tuesday afternoon by floods that affected eight villages. the government had declared the flooded area an emergency disaster area.
KPL stated that the disaster "cost several lives" and "left hundreds of people missing" without providing details.
Sitting on the roofs to escape the water, while others were brought to safety or rescued by boat. State media said helicopters were also used to rescue people.
The dam was built by a joint venture between South Korean companies with Thai and Laotian partners, and was still under construction. KPL described the part that collapsed as a "saddle dam", an auxiliary dam used to hold water beyond the main dike.
The South Korean agency Yonhap News quoted an unidentified SK Engineering & Construction official, one of the two South Korean project partners said the rainfall was three times higher than normal and that one of the five auxiliary dams had overflowed.
Many parts of Laos have recently been affected by heavy seasonal rains.
Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith suspended the planned meeting of his government and traveled with other ministers and other senior officials in Sanamxay District to monitor relief and relief operations, reported the KPL and the Vientiane Times. – clothing, food, drinking water, medicines, money and other items – from the "party, government organizations, business circles, officials, police and military and the people of all strata. "
Laos is one of the poorest countries in Asia, it has gone from communism to a market economy but remains a one-party state where freedoms are limited. are subject to strict restrictions, which limits the flow of information.
Electricity generated by several hydroelectric dams accounts for a significant portion of Laos' export earnings, with Thailand being a major source of
KPL said that the Xepian-Xe Nam Noy project cost about $ 1.02 billion.Many of the funding came from Thai lenders.
According to the company's website that has built and operates the dam, it is majority owned by SK E & C and Korea Western Power.The Thai power generation company of Ratchaburi, Thailand, holds a 25% stake and the company is the largest in the world. Lao state enterprise Holding holds 24%
The dam was built to divert the rivers Houay Makchanh, Xe Namnoy and Xe Pian into reservoirs. which feeds a 410 megawatt power plant that is expected to come into service in 2019. Only 10% of the energy produced was to be used locally, with 90% being exported to Thailand.
Laos is supposed to receive taxes, royalties and other revenues estimated at $ 33 billion a year from the dam.
According to project appraisal documents, about 30 villages were affected by the project with more than 2,000 people in eight resettled villages. About 10,000 people live in the affected area, most of them belonging to ethnic minorities.
The project was supposed to be a cash cow for SK E & C, part of the SK Group, one of the three major South Korean conglomerates including SK Hynix, the second largest memory chip maker in the world. world and SK Telecom, the largest telecommunications operator in South Korea.
The South Korean agency Yonhap News reported that SK E & C was sending its president to Laos and an emergency team in Seoul. The company has not responded to several calls requesting comments.
SK E & C was still trying to find out if the water had overflowed or if the dam had collapsed, but his efforts were mainly focused on rescuing people stranded by the flood, Yonhap
Last September, a dam exploded in the northeastern province of Xieng Khouang, damaging infrastructure, farmland and water supplies, but without causing casualties. The accident of the hydro dam of Nam Ao, with a power of 15 MW, led to hearings in the National Assembly of the country on the safety standards of hydropower projects and the promises of the government of Inspect such projects. cancel those who do not meet the standards, reports the Vientiane Times.
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Lee reports from Seoul, South Korea. Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul and Grant Peck in Bangkok contributed to this report
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This story was corrected to show that SK Hynix is the world's second largest memory chip maker, not the second largest chip maker as a whole.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This document may not be published, distributed, rewritten or redistributed.
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