brief ings
A Fact of Life Hoi An floods almost every year, causing extensive damage. Yet life and the tourism industry must go on.
T
he unspoilt view of the Thu Bon River is one of the highlights of stopping by the Sleepy Gecko Chillout Bar in Hoi An. Owner Steve Harrison, who is originally from the north of England and is not a stranger to wet weather, woke to a surprise on the morning of Nov. 16. “The day before I walked around the town and you could see [everyone] preparing their shops,” he says. “I knew something was coming.” “All the shops started moving their wares upstairs. They have a step up into them so you know the water is expected to come up about half a metre. We are a good two-anda-half metres above the river level where we are, and I didn’t think it was going to get that high. So we all went to bed without any real preparation.” It was a mistake. By early the next day, the water had risen right up to the entrance of the bar. “During the morning it kept rising and ended up coming down the side of the bar,” he adds. “There isn’t much you can do about it apart from watch it.” The flooding last November was one of the worst in living memory. Lasting for several days it was the aftermath of a tropical depression that brought torrential rains to the area and caused the rivers and reservoirs to rise to unprecedented levels. Many areas in
16 | Word February 2014
the old town were submerged. One section — from Bach Dang to Hoi An Market — was approximately 1.5m underwater, forcing the temporary closure of the market and many shops. There were 42 casualties in the area surrounding Hoi An. Yet the natural disaster hardly made a dent on the international news radar.
A Yearly Spectacle The floodwaters are not a new sight for the residents and businesses in Hoi An, who have seen them increase in frequency since 2006. Take a seat in one of the collection of bars and restaurants that line the banks of the Thu Bon River, you can see the scars from previous years. Each flood has left a water line a little higher up the wall than the last. In 2007, the boutique property Life Resort, now renamed Anantara, was destroyed by flooding. A new road was added around its perimeter to fence it off from the river and after six months of reconstruction, it was reopened to guests. In 2009 it was destroyed for a second time. This time round, says Steve, “the water nearly completely covered the market and most of the first floors of the buildings right on the river front. We went for a walk when the waters started receding and people were using canoes to get around. It created a
surreal atmosphere.” Yet Hoi An reacts quickly. Although businesses have to close, losing both takings and sometimes stock, it is not long before shops reopen and the tourists flock back into town. “The biggest problem is the clear up,” says Steve. “The amount of silt that is left as the river recedes is unbelievable, but it doesn’t take long to get it cleared up and back to how it was.” He adds: “If you can take a positive, the good thing about [the floods] is that the entire neighbourhood comes together. Everyone was out the next day with shovels and spades digging away what was left, and that was nice to see.” — Matthew Edwards