Nghe An: Hundreds of hectares of rubber trees were broken by a tornado

Late afternoon of July 19, in the area of Thai Hoa town and Nghia Dan district (old) now belonging to communes and wards of Nghe An province, heavy rain, whirlwinds, and strong winds caused severe damage to households that were contracted and workers who planted rubber trees on the red soil of Phu Quy.

Since last year, 2 hectares of rubber trees have been the main source of income for the family of Ms. Ho Thi Huong, a worker at Son Mong team, Tay Hieu II farm. However, the tornado at the end of July 19 caused over 400 rubber trees of the family to fall during harvest, hundreds of trees were uprooted.

Mrs. Ho Thi Huong said sadly: The family has invested hundreds of millions of dong in taking care of the garden, this is the second year the family has tapped latex, but now it is considered a total loss, the family now has nothing to rely on to make a living.

Not only Mrs. Ho Thi Huong's family, but also thousands of workers and contractors of Nghe An Coffee and Rubber Company are currently in dire straits after the impact of the tornado. Tay Hieu I Farm, belonging to Nghe An Coffee and Rubber Company Limited, is the unit with the largest rubber plantation area, with 752 hectares, and is also the unit that suffered the most damage, with an estimated 100 hectares of rubber trees broken, uprooted and tilted. It is worth mentioning that the entire rubber plantation area is in the process of latex exploitation.

Mr. Le Dinh Linh - Director of Tay Hieu I farm said: According to estimates, about 15% of the rubber tree area is broken and cannot be restored, and the tilted trees will also affect future productivity and output. For rubber plots with many broken trees, it is likely that they will have to be liquidated and planted with other types of trees.

Nghe An Rubber Coffee One Member Co., Ltd. currently manages over 1,365.3 hectares of rubber trees. The impact of heavy rain and tornadoes has caused more than 200 hectares of area, equivalent to about 112,500 rubber trees in the business period, to fall down. The trees that were not broken also fell into a state of being uprooted, with an estimated economic loss of about 30 billion VND. In terms of long-term damage, it could be up to 100 billion VND, because rubber trees have an exploitation cycle of up to 15 years.

Mr. Le Xuan Binh - Deputy General Director of Nghe An Rubber Coffee One Member Co., Ltd. said: Immediately after the natural disaster, the unit also came to survey, encourage workers, and mobilize forces to direct farms and contracted households to count the affected area and take remedial measures, focusing on pruning branches, cleaning the garden, and finding ways to prop up fallen trees. At the same time, the unit will also propose to all levels and sectors to have policies to support workers./.