Throughout the afternoon of September 15, inside Kim Lien Market in Hanoi, nearly 200 small merchants busily disassembled shelves, boxed merchandise, and moved personal belongings outside following the market’s formal shutdown to rectify fire prevention and safety deficiencies.
Stalls that once buzzed with haggling buyers and sellers echoed mostly with the scraping of tape, the thud of heavy lifting, and the quiet sorrow of vendors parting with trade fixtures tied to their livelihoods for decades.
After more than 30 years in business, Kim Lien Market at 23 Luong Dinh Cua Street, Kim Lien Ward, Hanoi, fell quiet.
Styrofoam boxes, cardboard cartons, and plastic bags lay strewn across the market aisles.
At individual stalls, merchants rushed to take down signage, unbolt display racks, pack cartons of goods, and wheel them out through the exits.
Under the directives of the Kim Lien Ward People’s Committee, the evacuation of all stock, equipment, and private assets from the premises had to be completed before September 16.
On September 15, local ward task forces were stationed on-site to assist stallholders with loading and hauling goods, ensuring a swift, safe, and orderly clearance process. Many bundles were lashed tight onto flatbed motorbikes and trucks, leaving several stalls completely bare.
One vendor recounted setting up shop here back in 1991, when the grounds were nothing more than bare earth. “I’ve been trading here since 1991, when this spot was just dirt. We built the stalls and put up the corrugated roofing ourselves,” she recalled.
Another merchant expressed deep heartache over saying farewell to the market community after three decades side by side with longtime peers. “We felt closer here than at home. We shared laughter, watched out for each other, and now everyone is scattering to different corners—it’s heartbreaking,” she confessed.
Merchants understood the urgent necessity of fire safety protocols and affirmed their compliance with the closure mandate. Still, many wished the eviction deadline had been extended by a few months to allow adequate time to arrange alternate livelihoods. “We’ve worked side by side for 30 years; there is deep attachment. But rules are rules, and we acknowledge that fire safety here falls short. Even so, had they given us a few months’ extension, it would have made a world of difference,” the merchant added.
First established in 1992, Kim Lien Market long served as an essential shopping hub for neighborhood residents and the primary livelihood for generations of small traders. Right up to its suspension, nearly 200 households maintained stalls inside.
Beginning at noon on September 14, the market ceased operations. Municipal authorities disconnected electricity and water supplies while erecting perimeter security barriers around the grounds.
The Kim Lien Ward People’s Committee requested stallholders not to haul fresh inventory into the market and urged proactive clearance and relocation of all assets according to the designated schedule.
According to ward officials, after decades of intensive use, the market’s physical infrastructure had severely deteriorated, failing multiple standard fire safety criteria.
On May 13, 2025, the Fire Prevention, Fighting, and Rescue Police Division under the Hanoi City Police inspected the premises, formally identifying lingering safety shortcomings at Kim Lien Market. Based on safety enforcement orders and on-site assessments, the Kim Lien Ward Investment and Infrastructure Project Management Board issued a market suspension notice on August 28, holding dialogue sessions to gather merchant feedback.
On September 9, ward leaders met directly with stallholders to outline the closure policy, detailed the rationale and relocation roadmap, and received vendor petitions for review.
With stalls shuttered, many household merchants are appealing for clear guidance on whether the market will ever reopen, or whether authorities can establish an interim temporary market so vendors can sustain daily incomes and stabilize their families while long-term plans take shape.
(Source: kenh14.vn)
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Source: Vietnam Insider