Lai Chau province receives central flood relief funding amid severe July floods

Heavy rainfall and flash floods on 17‑19 July devastated parts of north‑west Vietnam, especially Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Điện Biên and Sơn La. The disaster killed five people, left four missing and injured ten. About 28 homes collapsed completely, hundreds were damaged or flooded, and roughly 699 ha of rice and flower crops were lost. Provincial authorities estimated total damages at about 271.6 billion VND.

Lai Chau province, the hardest hit area, requested central assistance of 500 billion VND, including 300 billion VND from the 2026 national budget and an urgent allocation of 116 billion VND for immediate recovery. On 20 July, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyễn Văn Thắng approved an emergency transfer of 50 billion VND from the central budget to support relief, shelter reconstruction for displaced families and repair of critical infrastructure. Provincial officials have begun emergency housing projects for 24 households and are planning resettlement for about 200 households.

Rescue operations involved 1,000 personnel, 11 excavators, 40 vehicles and two trained search‑and‑rescue dogs deployed by the Ministry of Defence.