A Year On, 70% of Attapeu Flood Victims Return Home
About 70 percent of survivors have returned to their villages a year after the catastrophic dam collapse last year in Attapeu, amid ongoing efforts to rehabilitate flood victims.
The disaster occurred on the night of July 23, 2018, when water poured over a saddle dam at the Xe Pian-Xe Namnoy hydropower project in Champasack Province, leaving at least 70 people dead and over 14,000 living in emergency shelters. The floodwaters caused severe damage to private property and infrastructure.
Governor of Attapeu Province, Leth Sayaphone, said at a press conference on the state of affairs in Sanamxay District last week that over the past year progress had been made on the rehabilitation of flood victims, with the construction of housing now complete, as well as restoration of necessary infrastructure including electricity and groundwater.
