Dak Lieng rice granary at risk of total loss due to floods

Although the rain has stopped for many days, water from rivers and streams has flooded hundreds of hectares of rice fields in Dak Lieng commune, many areas are at risk of complete loss.

Just about half a month ago, the rice fields of Doan Ket 1 village were golden and full of grain, promising a bountiful harvest. However, now, about 1/3 of the people's rice fields have been submerged in water. It is recorded that dozens of hectares of rice are still submerged, in some areas the water level is more than 1 meter high, with only a few yellow rice stalks emerging.

Many summer-autumn rice fields in Dak Lieng commune were flooded.

Mr. Dam Minh Phung, Head of Doan Ket 1 village, said that this summer-autumn crop, Doan Ket 1 village planted 230 hectares of rice. To avoid risks due to floods, people proactively chose short-term rice varieties such as OM18 and OM5451, which have a short growing period, and can be harvested in only about 3 months.

However, no one could have predicted the natural disaster. After only a few days of continuous heavy rain, water from streams poured in, combined with the rising water of the Krong Ana River, submerging about 80 hectares of rice fields. This was a huge loss, directly affecting the lives of dozens of households. “Rice soaked in water for a long time will rot, turn black, and cannot be used. Money for seeds, fertilizers, and care are all wasted,” Mr. Phung said with a worried voice.

Mr. Nguyen Van Dong, Doan Ket 1 village, has 1.5 hectares of rice flooded this time. He just hopes the water recedes quickly so he can salvage as much as possible. He said the longer the rice is soaked in water, the less hope there is. After many days of soaking, the rice has turned black, and even if sold, it can only fetch a very low price. Harvesting flooded rice is also a difficult problem. The rice fields that are not collapsed can still be harvested by machine, the rice fields that are collapsed have to be harvested by hand, but the labor cost for hiring a manual harvester is very high, about 300,000 VND/day, and it is impossible to find someone to hire. Roughly, each hectare costs 30-40 working days, it is a pity to abandon it, but a sin to keep it.

Although the rain has stopped for many days, the fields of Doan Ket 1 village are still flooded.

Mr. Dong estimated that to invest in 3 hectares of rice, the cost of fertilizer, seeds, and labor would amount to about 70 million VND. With the price of flooded rice being only half of the normal price, this year's harvest will certainly not be enough to cover the costs. "We really hope that the government will have a support policy for the flooded area, to reduce some of the farmers' losses," Mr. Dong said.

In Lien Ket 3 village, Mr. Nguyen Cong Ban's family has 1.5 hectares of rice remaining submerged in water. Mr. Ban said that this summer-autumn crop, his family planted 4 hectares of rice. Before realizing the risk of heavy rain, he harvested 2.5 hectares according to the motto "green house is better than old field", accepting that the rice is not ripe enough to avoid risks if floods come. However, the remaining 1.5 hectares were completely submerged due to the sudden rain and flood.

According to Mr. Ban, this is the fourth consecutive summer-autumn crop year that rice farmers in the communes of Buon Tria, Buon Triet, Dak Lieng (old), now Dak Lieng (new), have been affected by floods. “Every time this season comes, I feel anxious. All the effort and money spent is drowned every year by floods,” Mr. Ban said sadly.

Mr. Dam Minh Phung's rice fields turned black after many days of being submerged in flood water.

Mr. Tran Danh Hiep, Head of the Economic Department of Dak Lieng Commune, said: In the summer-autumn crop of 2025, the entire Dak Lieng commune planted nearly 4,000 hectares of rice. As of early September, only about 150 hectares had been harvested. According to preliminary statistics from villages and hamlets, the entire commune currently has about 367 hectares of rice flooded, concentrated in the villages: Me Linh 1, Buon Tung 1, Doan Ket 1, Tan Giang, Hung Giang, Hoa Binh 1...

Every year, the summer-autumn crop is affected by floods and rains, so before that, the People's Committee of Dak Lieng commune had issued a document urging people to harvest the rice crop with the motto "green at home is better than old in the field", to avoid losses due to rain and floods. However, despite psychological preparation and response measures, damage is still inevitable when natural disasters are too unexpected.

In addition, a section of the river bank was also recorded as having collapsed in the commune. Upon receiving the information, the leaders of Dak Lieng commune inspected the scene and quickly mobilized militia and people to use earth and sand bags to build the bank and fix the problem, in order to minimize water overflow into neighboring areas, causing further damage. At the same time, they directed villages and hamlets to regularly check and clear the flow of the canal system, and reinforce the embankments along the Krong Ana river to protect the rice.

Source: https://baodaklak.vn/kinh-te/nong-lam-nghiep/202509/vua-lua-dak-lieng-truoc-nguy-co-mat-trang-vi-lu-edf0cf9/