According to the Centre for Hydrometeorology Forecasting, 2 or 3 tropical storms are expected to directly strike the mid-central region, including Da Nang, before the year ends.  The region is also predicted to be drenched by up to 6 torrential rain squalls over the last months of this year.  Floods are forecast to occur in the region from mid-September until early December, with this year’s flood crest likely to be higher than in the previous years.

Tree damage caused by a storm last year

To prepare for the arrival of such storms and floods and their complicated developments, the Da Nang Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Mitigation, and Control and Search and Rescue has given top priority to working out precautionary plans ahead of any possible natural disasters.

When a storm occurs at sea, the local border guards will keep around the clock contact with local fishermen operating offshore in order to keep all boats well informed of the storm’s position and movement, and if necessary they will direct them to leave dangerous waters or avoid entering them.  Also, all local inshore fishing boats will not be allowed to head out to sea.

The Deputy Chief of Staff of the municipal Border Guard High Command, Colonel Le Tien Hung, remarked, “Thanks to effective disaster preparedness and mitigation planning, no human casualties at sea have been reported over recent years”.

It was reported that a large volume of stone and soil from the construction site of a link route between Da Nang’s Tuy Loan village and Thua Thien Hue Province’s La Son village has been dumped into sections of the Cu De River in Hoa Vang District.  This action could cause obstruction to the river’s flow.  The city authorities have already asked the project’s construction units to quickly resolve this problem in order to ensure the natural flow of the river.

The city’s Irrigation Exploitation and Management Company and other relevant local agencies will check the operation of reservoirs around the city in case of floods or storms.

Thanks to the great efforts of the city authorities over recent years and the raised public awareness of how to cope with floods and storms, the damage caused by such incidents has been limited and no human mortalities have been recorded in the city.