Vietnam builds bridge in village where people crossed stream in plastic bags

Residents in a flood-hit village located in northern Vietnam’s Dien Bien Province now do not have to cross a fast-flowing stream in plastic bags anymore thanks to a newly-built steel suspension bridge.

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The 100m long and 1.5m wide bridge that connects two banks of Nam Po stream in Sam Lang village was officially opened to the villagers in an inauguration ceremony jointly organized by the Ministry of Transport and the Dien Bien People’s Committee on May 5.  

“This is the first time in my life I have seen such a nice and strong bridge,” said Chao Lan Chau, 68, a local resident.

“We would like to thank the government for giving us a new bridge. Our dream of a bridge has come true,” she added.

The walkway, which has a lifespan of 25 years, had been asked to be built ahead of the expected flood season this year at the request of the Ministry of Transport after a video surfaced in March of teachers and students in the village wrapping themselves in a plastic bag to cross Nam Po stream.

The footage was shot by Tong Thi Minh, a teacher at a village preschool, on her mobile phone during the flood season last year.

In the clip, female teachers and students were seen waiting for their turn to traverse Nam Po stream in a bag.

Local strong men were captured holding the bag’s mouth in one arm and swimming across the water with the other despite the powerful currents.

“It’s normal! That’s the only way to cross the stream because no bridge can stand floodwater,” Minh told Tuoi Tre.

“I’ve taught here since September last year. At first, I did not know how to ford the stream so I had to follow what local villagers did later,” she said, adding that she has grown familiar with the crossing method ever since.

According to Minh, many parents in the village also bring their children to school that way to keep their uniforms dry when the area is flooded.

A female teacher in Sam Lang village is seen being wrapped in a plastic bag during the flood season in 2013. Photo taken from the clip below

Video by Tuoi Tre includes footage provided by teacher Tong Thi Minh

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