HCM City to spend US$13 million fixing century-old sewers
Ho Chi Minh City has earmarked around VND300 billion (US$13.26 million) for a project to repair downtown sewers which have been deteriorating after being in use for more than a century, local media has reported.
Although the plan is mainly to focus on fixing the underground conduits under Dong Khoi, Pasteur and Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, parts that have seriously broken down will be completely replaced, news website VnExpress said, citing Nguyen Hoang Anh Dung, deputy director of the city's center for flooding prevention.
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| Ho Chi Minh City's oldest sewer was built in 1870 under Dong Khoi Street in District 1. Photo credit: VnExpress |
Work will not start until the end of this year due to a complex preparation process, according to Dung.
The sewers are part of a system built during French colonialism with the oldest under Dong Khoi Street dated to 1870, VnExpress reported.
With a vault design similar to that of famous underground tunnels in Paris, the system covers nearly 100 kilometers under districts 1, 3, 5 and 6. The biggest sewer is 2.35 meters wide and 1.8 meters high, while the smallest is around 0.5 meter high, it said.