Hundreds of people in a mountainous province of northern Vietnam are now struggling to continue their lives following a devastating flash flood that hit the locality earlier this week.

The disaster struck Mu Cang Chai Town in Yen Bai Province on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, killing at least two people, injuring eight, and causing 13 others to go missing.

Four schools were destroyed while 32 houses were swept away and 15 more damaged, bringing the total estimated damage to a whopping VND150 billion (US$6.6 million).

Many residents who managed to survive are now left empty-handed as the flash flood had taken away their homes.

Mu A Anh sorts out the belongings that were left behind following the flash flood. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The family of Mu A Tong is among those suffering the heaviest damage as his house and other belongings were completely lost in the disaster.

Tong said he had had to borrow money from all sources to build the house three years ago, adding that he has yet to pay up all the debt.

Tong, his wife, and their two children are now staying in a small room recently built at the home of his eldest brother.

Mu A Anh, another brother of Tong’s, also suffered a similar fate.

Several bags of rice that were not swept away are unusable as they were soaked in mud and water.

Mu A Anh shows his bag of rice that were soaked in water and mud. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Several other residents who lost their houses are taking shelter in the classrooms of a local high school.

Staying at the facility, Giang A Lau recounted that his house and money had been swept away by the flood.

Lau and his family members have been relying on local authorities to carry on with their livelihoods.

The People’s Committee in Yen Bai has provided rice and instant noodles for the affected residents during the hardship.

Residents take shelter in some high school classrooms in Mu Cang Chai. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!