Typhoon Damrey has wreaked havoc in the central and south central coast of Viet Nam, killing 29 people and leaving 29 missing by Sunday 1.00pm, according to the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control.

Police in Quang Nam Province help evacuate people from flooded areas. — VNA/VNS Photo Nguyen Son

The typhoon, the 12^th major storm to hit Viet Nam this year, made landfall early Saturday morning with winds of up to 135km/h. The typhoon then weakened into a low pressure and entered Cambodia.

The hardest hit regions include the south central provinces of Khanh Hoa, Phu Yen, and Binh Dinh, the central highlands provinces of Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong, and the central provinces of Quang Nam, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue, and Da Nang where the first events of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week (AELW) were taking place.

Major General Truong Duc Nghia, Chief of Office of the National Search and Rescue Committee, said this was “the strongest storm to make landfall in Khanh Hoa Province and the south central region in the past 20 years.”

He said the danger level of Damrey was even higher than that of Typhoon Doksuri which pummelled the central region in September.

Initial estimates showed the typhoon levelled more than 600 houses, damaged nearly 40,000 homes and flooded nearly 30,000ha fields of rice, vegetables and other crops.

About 230 fishing ships and vessels were either sunk or ruined whilst nearly 1,500 fish farms were damaged.

In addition, a total of 10 trains and more than 80 flights was cancelled.

According to estimates by the Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam, as of Sunday, the road network suffered losses of 70 billion VND(3 million USD) in total due to the storm.

The storm also uprooted trees, knocked down electricity poles and damaged power grid systems, which led to widespread blackouts in the central and south central regions.

All of Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa provinces except for Nha Trang; and all of Binh Dinh Province other than Tam Quan District suffered from total blackouts. Parts of Dak Lak, Kon Tum, Dak Nong and Quang Ngai provinces shared the same fate. 

As of late Sunday afternoon, State-owned power utility Electricity of Viet Nam said it had repaired and rendered operational all 220kV and 500kV power grids hit by the typhoon.  A major part of the 110kV power grid was also restored. However, the company had to cut power in some areas from Thua Thien-Hue to Binh Dinh to ensure people’s safety as floods worsened.

A residential area in Thua Thien-Hue Province remains flooded on Sunday. — VNA/VNS Photo The Lap

Serious flooding

Heavy rains and strong winds continued throughout Sunday in the central region, causing serious flooding.

From Quang Tri to Binh Dinh provinces, floodwater levels rose rapidly, submerging and isolating many areas as the region was warned of a historic flood.

According to the Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Search and Rescue of Thua Thien-Hue Provine, water level of rivers in the province increased very quickly on Sunday.

Many parts of National Highway 1A passing the province were submerged in 0.4-0.5m of water which caused prolonged traffic jams.  Provincial police were mobilised to direct traffic and guide vehicles to avoid dangerous areas.

Heavy downpours, combined with water released from Sông Tranh 2 Hydropower Plant, flooded many areas of Quang Nam Province, including Hoi An, which hosts some APEC activities this week.  City authorities banned local people from using boats to carry tourists around the old quarter of the city to ensure their safety.

At about 11.00am on Sunday, a landslide happened in National Highway 14E passing Phuoc Hoa District in the province.  Local authorities said 2 to 3 motorbike drivers were passing by at that time and risked being buried under the debris.

Local police and soldiers were sent there for rescue efforts.

Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Le Tri Thanh said on Sunday that all localities in the province were following developments to be responsive.

A landslide due to heavy rain also occurred at Tra Giang District of Quang Ngai Province on Sunday morning, killing 2 women and injuring another.

Weather forecasts said heavy downpours would continue to lash the region for several days, bringing risks of more flashfloods and landslides.

In Da Nang, city authorities and people on Sunday worked around the clock, despite heavy rains and winds, to collect the huge amount of debris left after two days battling the storm, including rubbish, fallen trees and billboards.

The city’s leaders held an urgent meeting in the day’s afternoon to discuss actions to clean up the city in time for APEC events this week, including the APEC leaders’ summit which has the attendance of the top leaders of APEC economies.

Electricity workers in Phu Yen Province repair an electricity pole that collapsed in Tuy Hoa City on Saturday. — VNA/VNS Photo The Lap

Urgent relief

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Sunday sent a message asking all authorities and agencies to quickly repair the damage caused by the typhoon and proactively respond to heavy rains and flooding.

He urged the leaders of provinces directly hit by the storm to spare no effort in searching for and rescue missing people.

He also asked local authorities and ministries to support disaster victims by providing accommodation, medical and food aid, guiding people to take measures to prevent after-flood outbreak of pandemic, repairing damaged houses and restoring the power network while ensuring the safety of dams and reservoirs.

He urged them to mobilise all forces and means needed to restore traffic along key roads, especially National Highway 1 and the North-South railway.

Earlier on Saturday, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung had visited several localities in Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa provinces to inspect the damage caused by the storm and direct relief efforts.

Meanwhile, the Standing Board of the Viet Nam Fatherland Front (VFF) Central Committee on Sunday decided to allocate 3 billion VND (132,000 USD) to the hardest hit regions.

The funds will be used to provide relief aid families of the deceased, missing and injured, and those whose houses collapsed or were swept away.

Khanh Hoa Province will receive 1 billion VND (44,000 USD) while Phu Yen, Binh Dinh, Dak Lak and Quang Ngai provinces will receive 500 million VND (22,000 USD) each.

Also on Sunday, the Viet Nam Red Cross Society released emergency aid, including money and essential goods valued at nearly 1.1 billion VND, to help the provinces of Khanh Hoa, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Dak Lak.  The organisation also dispatched two teams to Khanh Hoa and Binh Dinh to directly help storm affected people.

(Source: VNS)