by Nguyễn Mỹ Hà

During the current heat wave, which has baked everything in the streets, you may feel as though you are being roasted alive under direct sunlight. When the scorching sun shines brightly from as early as 6am and by 10am the heat has already become unbearable outdoors, I watch with utmost envy as my former open-water swimming friends call each other to go for an early swim at the Red River Alluvial Islet.

They have been enjoying the Red River’s low water levels, swimming about 2km upstream and downstream along the southern bank in less than an hour before stopping for a morning bowl of beef phở to start the day.

For many years, swimming enthusiasts of all ages have quietly challenged themselves to swim in the Red River. At the dock known as Cựu Chiến Binh, or War Veterans, many people gather for a morning swim, as veterans established a club to live on the islet and enjoy the open water and relatively wild surroundings.

But even hotter than the rising temperatures have been the heated discussions online and offline about the proposed mega Red River Axis project, which would directly affect the lives of residents of Hồng Hà Ward outside the dyke. Hồng means red, and Hà means river. Carrying abundant alluvia in its waters, the Red River has long been a mighty force commanding respect through the centuries.

Originating in the highlands more than 1,700m above sea level in China’s Yunnan Province, the river enters Việt Nam through Lào Cai Province. It runs for more than 500km through the country, passing several provinces including Lào Cai, Phú Thọ, Hà Nội and Ninh Bình before flowing into the East Sea at Ba Lạt river mouth in Thái Bình Province, now part of Hưng Yên Province.

Flowing from northwest to southeast, the river also forms part of the Việt Nam-China border for about 80km, with the southern bank belonging to Việt Nam and the northern bank to China.

In Lào Cai, the river stands about 73m above sea level. By the time it reaches Yên Bái, 145km away, it has dropped to 55m, with 26 rapids and waterfalls in between. Carrying more than 1.5kg of alluvia in each cubic metre of water, the Red River has always been vital to the basin and delta that bear its name.

From the river junction at Bạch Hạc in Việt Trì upstream, hundreds of springs and rivers from the karst mountains form a vast network of strong currents flowing into the Thao River, as it is known in Việt Trì City. From there downstream, the river channels water into a system of seven rivers that eventually flow into the East Sea.

Mother River

Among the many names the river has held in the provinces through which it flows, Sông Cả (The Biggest River) and Sông Cái (Mother River) have been the most respected. The Red River continues to play a vital role in the rice civilisation of northern Việt Nam.

Officially recorded in history for the first time in 1010, the Red River also gave Hà Nội its name, which literally means "Inside the River". The city’s West Lake was once part of the river before the watercourse shifted.

The river provides water for more than 920,000ha of rice cultivation, among the country’s most productive at 5.8 to 6 tonnes per hectare. It also supplies fingerlings for fish farms across the delta.

The Red River’s bed has long been filled with alluvia. As a result, the river has frequently overflowed its banks and become notorious throughout history for devastating floods.

For centuries, ancestors built dykes along the river to prevent floodwaters from spilling over every year. Historical records mainly note the largest and most destructive floods, those that breached the dykes and swept away countless victims.

When the river rises

Under King Lý Nhân Tông in 1078, floodwaters rose into the citadel. In May 1121, the water rose again despite another dyke having been built in 1108 to protect it.

Under King Trần Thái Tông in 1243, floodwaters even breached the walls of Đại La Citadel.

In 1270, under King Trần Thánh Tông, floodwaters during the seventh lunar month rose so high that people had to travel around the citadel by boat.

In 1467, under King Lê Thánh Tông, floodwaters broke the dykes, submerged rice fields and caused famine and deaths.

In 1491, during the eighth lunar month, rain fell continuously for days and nights, and floodwaters rose so high that the Celestial Palace was submerged by 2 thước 2 tấc, equivalent to about 1 metre.

In 1630, under King Lê Thần Tông, floodwaters flowed through the streets around the South Gate of the citadel, drowning many people. The royal citadel was flooded again in the following years.

In 1802, under King Gia Long of the Nguyễn Dynasty, the dykes were breached. In 1844, floodwaters submerged rice fields in many provinces, including Hưng Yên, Hà Nội, Nam Định and Quảng Yên.

Under King Tự Đức (1829-83), the dykes weakened because they were not reinforced annually. Văn Giang Dyke in Hưng Yên Province was repeatedly breached over 18 consecutive years, forcing people to abandon their homes as villages turned into marshland.

During the French colonial period, the dykes failed roughly every three years. The most notorious floods, in 1893 and 1915, submerged four provinces in the Red River Delta for more than three months. During the following century, the delta suffered 26 major floods, most of them occurring during the eighth lunar month, which coincides with the autumn harvest season.

In August 1945, the same year as the August Revolution, and following the deadly famine that claimed 2 million lives in the spring, dykes were breached at 79 points, submerging 11 provinces, inundating more than 300,000ha of crops and affecting 4 million people.

In 1971, severe flooding killed about 500 people and affected more than 100,000 others in the war-ravaged North Việt Nam, with a population of just over 21 million at the time.

After that year, dykes were reinforced annually and irrigation networks were dug to divert floodwaters, helping the delta avoid similarly devastating floods.

But Hà Nội has never stopped remaining alert to dyke safety. Reinforcement work, nightly patrols during the rainy season and close coordination between the Flood and Storm Prevention Committee, the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, local police and military forces remain essential whenever water levels become dangerously high.

Taming nature

The might and beauty of the Mother River have always reflected the power of nature, demanding that people live in accordance with it. Its behaviour remains impossible to predict, let alone fully control for human ambition.

Hà Nội now seeks to transform the powerful and resource-rich Red River into a gentler flow carrying tourists along embanked shores lined with new urban developments and modern complexes.

Seoul’s government, which Hà Nội has looked to for inspiration, once built extensive concrete embankments along its waterways. However, after many years, officials there recognised that natural embankments work better against erosion and preserve natural water flows more effectively.

I remember visiting Seoul a few years ago, when residents proudly spoke about how, under a former mayor, the city removed layers of concrete and stone that had buried an old stream near the citadel. The natural flow was restored, creating more open space for people to rest their eyes, breathe fresher air and, most importantly, pause before exhausting natural resources for human use. VNS