Hakha is the capital city of Chin State, Myanmar. The population is estimated at 25,000 (2013). The area is about 12.5 sq miles. It is situated on 6,120 ft above sea level on the foot of popular Mountain Rungtlang whicah peak is about 7,543 ft above sea level.
Hakha is in the middle of the Chin State and is connected with Gangaw-Monywa Highway in the East; Falam-Kalay Highway in the North; Matupi-Mindat-Kanpalet Rood in the South and Thantlang-Saisihchuak Rd in the west and Hakha-Hmantaw-Kalay Road in the Northeast. Therefore "Hakha is a commercial center and the Crossroads of Chin State." It wil be an international trade center between Bangladesh, Myanmar, India. Buhtan, Nepal and China because of it stretegic location.
Hakha has a very beautiful scenery. There are many beautiful pine trees around the city that make Hakha more beautiful. There many red rhododendrons on Runtlang Mountain. Cherry flowers blossom in the winter and it beaitify the City like a Japanese city. The small valley of Nawi is so beautiful and I compare it to California in the USA. The valley of Timit and Thita is beyound description. It is a paradise of the Chinland. I walked there countless times on foot.
All these are the good parts of Hakha but there are the sad parts of Hakha as well. Hakha has so many landslide within and the vicinity of the city. I attended No. 1 SHS Hakha in 1983-84 School Year. I had opportunities to visit many places and around the city and I knew the city landscape so well.
I walked so many places around the vicinity of Hakha so many times. I discovered many deep and large cracks around the city especially in the lower part of the city in 1982-84.
I visited cheched those areas again and again whenver I visited Hakha until I left it in 1997. I visited to Zion Church area in that particular year. I had had so much concerns about the landslide in the city in that time. I visited to many parts of Hakha area and I foresee the destruction of the city more and less in the near future if there is s trong earthquake or heavy monsoon rains that can grigger the most dangerous and destructive landslides in around the city. I predicted this so many times among the Chin people.
I found that the landlide in Hakha area are "slow motion landlide" and people do not notice it. In fact, the whole city is moving down ward very slowly may be 1 mm a year and it is so small and people do not feel it or notice it. But in some places it slowly destroyed houses slowly. In many areas houses moved down and collapsed slowly because of land sift.
I noticed the worst parts of Hakha area are as follows:
1. The southside of Civil Hospital
2. Beltway between Old Hakha and New Hakha (It is southside of Civil Hospital)
3. Hospital Ward between the Civil Hospital and Chin-Oo-Sii; there are so many cracks here.
4. The back side of the Grave of Rev. Arthur Carson
5. Keisihsang Ward (Lower part of Dawrthar) including Pyine Thitdaw Zung area
6. Dawrthar Ward especially Taungzalat Lan and around Zion Baptist Church
7. Upper and lower parts of Hakha-Matupi Road from Lunghleiva-Auto Telephone zung
8. Upper and Lower parts of Gangaw-Hakha Road
9. Many areas near most of the streams within Hakha City
10. Lower Part of Old Hakha (Khuachung).
11. Around the Lansone Area (the Border of Pyidawtha and Dawrthar)
I visited Sizung Ward the last time in 1997 and followed the a big crack between Sizung Sang and Chin-oo-Sii. The crack was so large and long. It was so dangerous but the government issued building permits to many families in that area. I had no idea why the authorities issued building permits in that kind of dangerous places? And wy do many families tried to build houses there? I was shocked for the government plan.
I came to USA in 1997 but Hakha was always in my mind. I always think about that city. In 1988 Zion Baptist Church asked me to write an article oy my choice while I was in Dayton. So, I wrote about the imminent danger of landslide in Hakha. It was printed in Zion Par Makazine Vol.2 (February 2011).
I looked the shape of Runtlang and the landscape of Hakha and I strongly believed that Runtlang was in one point thicker and bigger. But for some reasons it cracked and collapsed. So, I wrote in that article that "Rungtlang probably collapsed due to strong earthquake many thousand years ago and its "leivawr" (dust/rocks/sands etc) went down and rested in Pyidawtha and Dawrthar. And the proper city of Hakha actucally is established on Leivawr (dust). It may collapsed again in the near future." I also predicted that some parts of Rungtlang may be collapsed again like in the past.
By looking its shape and the landscape in Paliklen, Pyidawtha and Dawrthar, I firmly believed that Rungtlang was cracked severely and collapsed violently many thousand years ago by eathquake or the torrential rains. The Chin State is not far from Sagaing Fault in the east and a plate tectonics boundaryin the west and it was probably hit by earthquake many thousand years ago.
Therefore, I have always concerns for Hakha city because of its natural landscape, weak surface, steep slope, soft soil and rains and waters. I predicted that the landslides that could create havoc and huge losses in the city since many houses are way over Kyats 3,500 lakh. If one house collapse it is a huge loss for the city.
Therefore, I thought doing landslife survey is an urgent important issue for Hakha City and I requested the CBCUSA BT representatives at Dallas BT Meeting (March 2012) to provide $2,000 in order to do the landslide survey around Hakha city. We formed I committee "Hakha Leimin Research Tuahnak" as follows:
1. Chairman------------Pu Chan Hrem
2. Recorder--------------Rev. Lal Pek Lian
3. Geologist-------------Pa Van Lian Thang
4. Helper----------------Pa Ceu Chin Thang
5. Oversea Advisor-- Rev. Dr. Hai Vung Lian le Rev. Dr. C. Duh Kam, USA
I wrote an article about Landslide and our committee in the Muko Makazine. I asked the Muko's editor by email whether he received my article. He told me that "Vung, 11 houese have been collapsed since I got your article. We will print it right this week." His words saddended my heart. My article was published in June 2013.
This committee targeted 9 places to do a through survey around Hakha city where the cracks, the landlides and, land sifts are so clear and destrcution is imminent.
The purpose were to count how many visual big cracks around the city; to measure them their length and width in general; to take a picture and video record; to produce a computer map and to predict what could happen in the future and to advocate the residents of Hakha to move their homes to a safer places; to produce a paper with a detail map of the danger of landslide in Hakha and to submit it to the Chin State Government so that they may understand the need and importance of creating the new Hakha city and to draw a modern new city plan for Hakha in a safer places like in the New Hakha and to open a new city between Chuncung Village and New Hakha; between New Hakha an Ritkuangtlang near Timit River.
In order to achieve this plan I created a blog in January 2015 to collect data of landslide in the vicinity of Hakha. Afew years ago I precicted that Hakha is in imminent danger and some day the city will collapse and people could face huge losses and problems in the near furure if they do not move to a safer location. I always suggested in my article that the Chin State government needs to draw a modern city plan for Hakha before its destructions by landslide.
Hakha is in the middle of the Chin State and is connected with Gangaw-Monywa Highway in the East; Falam-Kalay Highway in the North; Matupi-Mindat-Kanpalet Rood in the South and Thantlang-Saisihchuak Rd in the west and Hakha-Hmantaw-Kalay Road in the Northeast. Therefore "Hakha is a commercial center and the Crossroads of Chin State." It wil be an international trade center between Bangladesh, Myanmar, India. Buhtan, Nepal and China because of it stretegic location.
Hakha has a very beautiful scenery. There are many beautiful pine trees around the city that make Hakha more beautiful. There many red rhododendrons on Runtlang Mountain. Cherry flowers blossom in the winter and it beaitify the City like a Japanese city. The small valley of Nawi is so beautiful and I compare it to California in the USA. The valley of Timit and Thita is beyound description. It is a paradise of the Chinland. I walked there countless times on foot.
All these are the good parts of Hakha but there are the sad parts of Hakha as well. Hakha has so many landslide within and the vicinity of the city. I attended No. 1 SHS Hakha in 1983-84 School Year. I had opportunities to visit many places and around the city and I knew the city landscape so well.
I walked so many places around the vicinity of Hakha so many times. I discovered many deep and large cracks around the city especially in the lower part of the city in 1982-84.
I visited cheched those areas again and again whenver I visited Hakha until I left it in 1997. I visited to Zion Church area in that particular year. I had had so much concerns about the landslide in the city in that time. I visited to many parts of Hakha area and I foresee the destruction of the city more and less in the near future if there is s trong earthquake or heavy monsoon rains that can grigger the most dangerous and destructive landslides in around the city. I predicted this so many times among the Chin people.
I found that the landlide in Hakha area are "slow motion landlide" and people do not notice it. In fact, the whole city is moving down ward very slowly may be 1 mm a year and it is so small and people do not feel it or notice it. But in some places it slowly destroyed houses slowly. In many areas houses moved down and collapsed slowly because of land sift.
I noticed the worst parts of Hakha area are as follows:
1. The southside of Civil Hospital
2. Beltway between Old Hakha and New Hakha (It is southside of Civil Hospital)
3. Hospital Ward between the Civil Hospital and Chin-Oo-Sii; there are so many cracks here.
4. The back side of the Grave of Rev. Arthur Carson
5. Keisihsang Ward (Lower part of Dawrthar) including Pyine Thitdaw Zung area
6. Dawrthar Ward especially Taungzalat Lan and around Zion Baptist Church
7. Upper and lower parts of Hakha-Matupi Road from Lunghleiva-Auto Telephone zung
8. Upper and Lower parts of Gangaw-Hakha Road
9. Many areas near most of the streams within Hakha City
10. Lower Part of Old Hakha (Khuachung).
11. Around the Lansone Area (the Border of Pyidawtha and Dawrthar)
I visited Sizung Ward the last time in 1997 and followed the a big crack between Sizung Sang and Chin-oo-Sii. The crack was so large and long. It was so dangerous but the government issued building permits to many families in that area. I had no idea why the authorities issued building permits in that kind of dangerous places? And wy do many families tried to build houses there? I was shocked for the government plan.
I came to USA in 1997 but Hakha was always in my mind. I always think about that city. In 1988 Zion Baptist Church asked me to write an article oy my choice while I was in Dayton. So, I wrote about the imminent danger of landslide in Hakha. It was printed in Zion Par Makazine Vol.2 (February 2011).
I looked the shape of Runtlang and the landscape of Hakha and I strongly believed that Runtlang was in one point thicker and bigger. But for some reasons it cracked and collapsed. So, I wrote in that article that "Rungtlang probably collapsed due to strong earthquake many thousand years ago and its "leivawr" (dust/rocks/sands etc) went down and rested in Pyidawtha and Dawrthar. And the proper city of Hakha actucally is established on Leivawr (dust). It may collapsed again in the near future." I also predicted that some parts of Rungtlang may be collapsed again like in the past.
By looking its shape and the landscape in Paliklen, Pyidawtha and Dawrthar, I firmly believed that Rungtlang was cracked severely and collapsed violently many thousand years ago by eathquake or the torrential rains. The Chin State is not far from Sagaing Fault in the east and a plate tectonics boundaryin the west and it was probably hit by earthquake many thousand years ago.
Therefore, I have always concerns for Hakha city because of its natural landscape, weak surface, steep slope, soft soil and rains and waters. I predicted that the landslides that could create havoc and huge losses in the city since many houses are way over Kyats 3,500 lakh. If one house collapse it is a huge loss for the city.
Therefore, I thought doing landslife survey is an urgent important issue for Hakha City and I requested the CBCUSA BT representatives at Dallas BT Meeting (March 2012) to provide $2,000 in order to do the landslide survey around Hakha city. We formed I committee "Hakha Leimin Research Tuahnak" as follows:
1. Chairman------------Pu Chan Hrem
2. Recorder--------------Rev. Lal Pek Lian
3. Geologist-------------Pa Van Lian Thang
4. Helper----------------Pa Ceu Chin Thang
5. Oversea Advisor-- Rev. Dr. Hai Vung Lian le Rev. Dr. C. Duh Kam, USA
I wrote an article about Landslide and our committee in the Muko Makazine. I asked the Muko's editor by email whether he received my article. He told me that "Vung, 11 houese have been collapsed since I got your article. We will print it right this week." His words saddended my heart. My article was published in June 2013.
This committee targeted 9 places to do a through survey around Hakha city where the cracks, the landlides and, land sifts are so clear and destrcution is imminent.
The purpose were to count how many visual big cracks around the city; to measure them their length and width in general; to take a picture and video record; to produce a computer map and to predict what could happen in the future and to advocate the residents of Hakha to move their homes to a safer places; to produce a paper with a detail map of the danger of landslide in Hakha and to submit it to the Chin State Government so that they may understand the need and importance of creating the new Hakha city and to draw a modern new city plan for Hakha in a safer places like in the New Hakha and to open a new city between Chuncung Village and New Hakha; between New Hakha an Ritkuangtlang near Timit River.
In order to achieve this plan I created a blog in January 2015 to collect data of landslide in the vicinity of Hakha. Afew years ago I precicted that Hakha is in imminent danger and some day the city will collapse and people could face huge losses and problems in the near furure if they do not move to a safer location. I always suggested in my article that the Chin State government needs to draw a modern city plan for Hakha before its destructions by landslide.
Five months after creating this blog some parts of Hakha city were destroyed landslieds caused by torrential rains and over 700 homes wered destroyed and relocated to the Hakha Thar near Hakha-Falam road.
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