A spokesman for the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT) told Kiripost that nationwide 11 roads and one railway route have been damaged by flooding as a result of climate change Extreme weather conditions have had disastrous consequences nationwide, damaging 11 roads, with a landslide in Mondulkiri cutting off access to National Road 76 and more weather warnings issued for this week. Heang Sotheayouth, Director of Information and Public Relations at the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT), said that National Road 76 was cut off by a landslide yesterday at midnight in Mondulkiri. He added that this is a rare occurrence and is the result of climate change. On Monday, Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology, announced that in the next three to four days the water level of the Mekong River will rise to between 7.65 to 16.7 meters in the upper region of Cambodia. These extreme weather conditions to date have damaged 11 roads nationwide, seven of which are provincial roads and the rest are national roads, according to MPWT’s spokesman. After two weeks of rain in Mondulkiri, the water level of streams have drastically risen, causing the landslide that cut away the strategic National Road 76 yesterday. Sotheayuth said, “Government officials stopped all traffic on this road immediately at 6pm yesterday before there was the landslide.” He added that announcements were made via ministries’ Facebook pages and other social media platforms. “But, around midnight yesterday, the landslide occurred; thus, the road was cut off immediately. Therefore, all vehicles are barred from traveling,” he added. After the road was blocked, government officials in Mondulkiri immediately began building a detour to prevent traffic jams. MPWT is cooperating with local officials to complete the detour as soon as possible. However, because of the location of the damaged road, which is surrounded by mountains, streams and dense forests, it is difficult to construct an alternative route, he added. After the detour is built, a committee that has already been formed will study the impacts of the damage to start working on fixing the road, Sotheayuth told Kiripost. On Monday, MPWT also announced the halt of traffic on National Road 33A, which connects White Horse Roundabout with Leang Teuk Beach in Kep Province, for all types of heavy vehicles due to flooding. Yesterday, some parts of the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville railway section were cut off by flooding, disrupting rail transport. Immediately after the incident, MPWT and Royal Railways took urgent action and made repairs. The railway reopened the next day, according to Sotheayuth. In Kampong Speu, National Road 43 was damaged on Monday preventing all types of vehicles from traveling on the road, he said. “After the incident, government officials and technical experts took actions to facilitate traffic by putting traffic signs to prevent unintentional accidents,” Sotheayuth added.