At noon on the first day of 2019, hearing of a bus carrying more than 20 students overturned on Hai Van Pass and then fell down, Mr. Le Van Thanh, a veteran driver of Hai Van Tunnel Management and Operation Company, and I drove towards the scene. Dozens of police, firefighters and locals gathered to save the victims there.
"Hai Van the top majestic scene"
Difficulties in Hai Van Quan
The location of the accident was about 2 km north of Hai Van Pass. Before the scene of a bus collapsed by a sprawling tree at the foot of the cliff, Thanh could not hide his shock: “One victim died on the way to the hospital, another broke his arm. The bigger stumps below supported the vehicle, if not, it could be worse”.
This unlucky bus carrying students of Kien Giang Economic and Technical College on their internship trip. It was reported that they would to see the top of Hai Van Quan. But then, the promenade received disastrous results.
In 2005, when the tunnel through the Hai Van mountain was put into operation, this famous mountain pass ended the North-South natural mission, Hai Van Quan became a tourist attraction. However, Hai Van was still a very dangerous location. It is always the most rugged mountain pass along the S-shaped nation. Despite being upgraded, repaired and expanded, here, death is always lurking on those who pass the pass. At noon, at the slippage, the passenger car crossing the talus plunged into the abyss, underneath the clouds hanging on the pass, but unfortunately, the blood stains, victims’ belongings scattered, trees being shuffled up, which made me shudder.
Being a local, Thanh shook his head as if to ask himself: “Many drivers do not dare to go at noon and it is dark, because in a deserted place, just by losing focus, the accident happens immediately. Yet they still went on, surely this driver first crossed the pass. So many accidents have occurred so far.” As he said, Thanh pointed to the side of the cliff opposite the places where the small shrines were still waving of incense smoke.
Many years ago, in the journey to discover Hai Van Quan, we met two very special men here. One is Nguyen Van Tho and the other is Nguyen Bua. They all nearly reach the age of 60, residing in block 4, Kim Lien ward, Lien Chieu district, Da Nang City. In “the top majestic scene”, these two men chose to work as a daily tire repairer for the passengers crossing Hai Van Pass.
When there were no guest, the two men cleaned and flavored the worshipers of the unfortunate people. Bua chose the northern pass called Hai Van Quan, and Tho chose the southern pass called “the top majestic scene” as their residence.
The trips to pass the Hai Van Pass to Hue have occurred from the 90s of the last century, each time was an adventure of life and death. In the years of 80-90 of the last century, there were always accidents every day on Hai Van Pass, and many people were killed and injured due to flip over on the pass. The small shrines for the unfortunate just grew along the road.
Since the completion of the Hai Van road tunnel, less people passed through the pass. But it was not uncommon for the tragic accident to happen when two old repairing men on the pass helped take them to the hospital immediately. Back then, Mr. Nguyen Van Tho was asked how many people had been saved when they passed this dangerous pass. He shook his head and said, “How can I remember all?”
Changes at the foot of the pass
On the occasion of gratitude to the War Invalids and Martyrs’ Day (July 27th, 2019), Mr. Nguyen Tan Dong, Director of Hai Van Tunnel Management Board, led us to visit families in the ground clearance area for Hai Van 2 Tunnel Project. Among them were parishioners or policy families in Lang Co town area (Thua Thien Hue province).
Mr. Nguyen Van Can, a revolutionary senior officer, and his house was not so far from the foot of Hai Van mountain. Nearly 90 years old, living at the foot of the pass, he was old but witnessed an unexpected change. The youth plunged into the war, when the battlefield settled down the smell of gunfire, Can returned to his hometown. Honored to be awarded many noble awards by the Party and the State, including the Firs Class Resistance Medal and this year he just received the 55-year-old Party Badge, but for this elder, the most exciting thing was passed through Hai Van mountain in 2005 for the first time, when Hai Van road tunnel came into operation after so many years of construction. “The miraculous thing is people of Lang Co having relatives in Da Nang just have to cross the pass to visit each other and they will understand the value” said Mr. Can Van Can.
Mr. Nguyen Tan Dong, Director of Hai Van Tunnel management board visited Mr. Nguyen Van Can
“When our government was preparing to dig a road through Hai Van mountain (Hai Van tunnel), I did not know when it would be finished, I wished to live until that time to witness the construction. Now that our people are about to finish the second tunnel. Lang Co people will be the first ones benefit from this project”, said Mr. Nguyen Van Can.
Not so far from his house was Mrs. Ngo Thi Lo. She was 87, a revolutionary soldier who was imprisoned by the enemy, was nearly 60 years old this year. Her family was in the clearance for Hai Van 2 tunnel project. After pioneering to hand over the site and relocating to a new place, her family now had a decent life in a new house in resettlement area not far from the previous one.
Mr. Nguyen Tan Dong, Director of Hai Van Tunnel management board visited Mrs. Ngo Thi Loi
When talking about a new life in a new place, and a new home, Lo was very happy. Mr. Nguyen Tan Dong said that households in the area of land clearance, when the local authorities had mentioned about the problem, they agreed to move to a new place with the great purpose of having a new construction project for a lifetime.
Hai Van 2 - Rescue inside the mountain
Mr. Vo Ngoc Trung, Director of Hai Van Tunnel Operation and Management Enterprise, said that through 12 years of operation and exploitation (from June 2005 up to now) there were more than 20 million vehicles passing through the tunnel. Every time there was an incident such as a car crashing in the tunnel, the operation management team had to close the tunnel to solve the problem.
So far, operation and management unit has responded directly to the accident very well, there were rescues just in minutes. However, Mr. Vo Ngoc Trung shared: “This is not good, we must have the second tunnel pipe soon”.
The project of expanding the road tunnel through Hai Van Pass was more than ever expected to be completed soon to put into operation, contributing to minimize traffic accidents and contribute to the development of trade in the South and the North. The importance of early construction of the second tunnel pipe in Hai Van was set and considered as “rescue” inside the mountain.
The project of expanding Hai Van road tunnel began with Phase 1 of repairing and upgrading the existing Hai Van tunnel (Hai Van 1 tunnel) and improving the section of national highway 1 through Hai Van Pass. Phase 2, to expand the existing evacuation tunnel into a traffic tunnel (Hai Van 2 tunnel) with a scale of 4 lanes and to expand bridges and roads with a scale of 4 lanes. Phase 1 had been completed. Phase 2 was reaching the finish line. It was expected that in 2020 the tunnel would be put into operation.
Assoc. Prof. PhD. Tran Chung - Chairman of Vietnam Association of Road Traffic Investors, former Director of the State Department of Construction Inspection (Ministry of Construction) said: “To minimize the factors causing accidents, to avoid traffic jams, to be safer, to save time circulating through the tunnel, the second tunnel goes into operation will solve those problems”.
Assoc. Prof. PhD. Tran Chung said that the two lanes of traffic running in the same direction in the tunnel would overcome the limitations of traffic organization and operation management of the Hai Van 1 tunnel as it is today: exhausted gas, expensive in operation. operating electrostatic precipitator system (3 electrostatic precipitator stations), dirty air intake system and fresh air supply and the risk of traffic safety due to the traffic of two opposite lanes in a tunnel. Meanwhile, the system vertical ventilation system with tunnel circulation in the same direction creates a clean air flow (plunger effect), so according to the calculation, maintenance cost is only about 40% - 50% of maintenance cost for a tunnel like Hai Van tunnel now ”
Hai Van Tunnel
The Ministry of Transport also evaluated that the implementation of Phase 2 of the project would contribute to ensure the capacity of Hai Van tunnel operation and exploitation in the coming time, especially in view of the growth of vehicle traffic 10- 15%/year, to prevent overloading in the current Hai Van 1 tunnel, and simultaneously synchronize the scale of 4 lanes across the national Highway 1.
In 2020, the problem of the black spot in Hai Van will be minimized, pushing the memory of mourning back into the past, expanding trade opportunities for Hue - Da Nang, the Central and the whole country.
Nguyen Quang Thanh
