TYPHOON DOKSURI HITS VIETNAM
Officials say it may be the most powerful storm in a decade
HEAVY rain and wind lashed Vietnam’s central coast yesterday as Typhoon Doksuri made landfall, prompting mass evacuations as officials predicted it could be the most powerful storm in a decade.
Trees were torn down and authorities cut power in some areas to avoid accidents as residents who remained in their homes hunkered down.
“The kids stayed at home and there’s not much in the markets. I bought enough instant noodles for the family, so I think we’re good,” Nghe An resident Nguyen Thi Hue, 58, said.
The storm clocked 165kph winds before it reached the coast yesterday morning, according to the Hong Kong Observatory, which classified Doksuri as a “severe typhoon”.
One person died in Hue province when he was swept away in a river following heavy rains, according to the local government’s website.
A 3-year-old child was injured after the roof blew off her house, the website added.
More than 79,000 people were evacuated across four provinces expected to be hardest hit, the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority said. It predicted the storm could be the worst to hit Vietnam in a decade.
Officials ordered all boats and residents to stay onshore.
“The provinces are focusing on evacuating remaining households to ensure people’s safety,” Agriculture Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong said on state-run Vietnam Television (VTV).
“We also need to encourage fishermen to leave their boats, it could be harmful to their lives.”
The storm reached Ha Tinh and Quang Binh provinces yesterday morning, according to VTV, with neighbouring Nghe An and Quang Tri provinces also expected to be battered.
Dozens of flights to the area were cancelled, and most schools were closed.
The Vietnam Red Cross Society said it was donating US$45,000 (RM188,000) and sending essential supplies to the area along with volunteers who were helping people leave their homes.
The government said on Thursday it had 250,000 soldiers on standby, along with a fleet of vehicles and boats at the ready.