Crossing stream by plastic bags clip prompts ministry to build bridge

A man is helping a small girl to cross the stream in a plastic bag

Ministry leaders said that the bridge would be built in the Sam Lang Highlands Village, Na Hy Commune, in order to ensure the safely of locals who cross Nam Po Stream in flood seasons.

The bridge is estimated to cost around VND3.5 billion (USD165,680). The ministry has assigned the provincial Department of Transport to act as the project’s investor and the construction will be commenced in the next two months so as to be in use by the next rainy season.

The bridge construction is just a temporary solution to a larger problem. The area is in need of much more investment to local roads.

Sam Lang Highlands Village is home to about 100 households of Mong ethnic people.

During the rainy season, the water in the stream can become 80-metres wide and runs very fast, so no boats or ferries can operate and a temporary bridge is out of commission. The situation has forced residents to cross by unconventional means, wearing large white plastic bags while somebody pulls them across.

A teacher named Tong Thi Minh, who was assigned to teach at Sam Lang Preschool in the village, used her mobile phone to film the scene. The clip was then sent to Tuoi Tre Thanh Pho Ho Chi Minh online newspaper and went viral, stirring up public concern over the past few days.

“I was assigned to teach at the Sam Lang Preschool last September. Due to the heavy rains and serious flooding, I was unable to cross the Nam Po Stream to get to class. I asked for help from two young men. They asked me if we already had plastic bags and gave me one. Another man asked me to stay in the bag while he pulled me across the stream. When I was in the bag, I was so scared that I dared not open my eyes until we reached the shore. I could not breathe either,” the teacher said.

The full video clip can be watched at:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nznzIFR51gY