Death toll in Vietnam flash floods climbs to 60
HANOI: The death toll following flash floods caused by a tropical depression in central and northern Vietnam has risen to 60, authorities said on Saturday, with 37 people still missing and 31 treated for injuries.
Eleven of those killed in Hoa Binh province died early on Thursday when their houses were buried by a landslide while they were sleeping, the Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention said, adding that seven people were still missing in that incident.
Authorities on Friday found the body of a Vietnam News Agency reporter who was swept from a bridge while recording the floods. But they have not yet found two border guards reported missing after their car was swept away while checking on anti-flood measures in Thanh Hoa province late on Tuesday.
“We haven’t suffered from such severe and intense floods for the past 10 years,” Agriculture Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong told state-run Vietnam Television.
Nearly 330 houses have been destroyed in heavy rains that began late on Sunday, with nearly 34,000 homes submerged, according to reports.
Some 17,500 people have been evacuated.
Up to 700 millimetres of rain fell over four days in central and northern Vietnam. Heavy rains stopped on Friday, but authorities warned that more landslides could happen. — dpa