Floods Caused by Tropical Cyclone Damrey
Heavy floods have caused massive casualties in three Vietnam provinces, killing more than 80 people and damaging more than a hundred thousand houses.
After Tropical Cyclone Damrey, floods affected the provinces of Khan Hoa, Ninh Thuan and Phu Yen. Aside from human casualties, the agricultural sector is affected as well. Media reports say around 10,000 hectares of rice and more than 15,000 hectares of vegetables were flooded.
The country’s disaster department or the Khanh Phan with the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority also disclosed a number of missing people and injured. The disaster agency reported that some 26 people are missing and 174 were injured. It said some of the victims were in vessels that capsized at sea. Others were killed in landslides.
Typhoon Damrey pummeled central Vietnam over the weekend, just days before the APEC summit of Asia-Pacific leaders was expected to begin. The typhoon was the 12th major storm of the year.
The Aftermath
The floods left a trail of destruction in the Asian nation. The Vietnamese community affected by the disaster is launching a cleanup drive after floods submerged homes and buildings. Roads that had been flooded or washed away caused traffic jams across several provinces.
In addition, drone footage showed a popular tourist city of Hoi An under water.
Flooding is not new in Vietnam. The country of more than 90 million people is known to be prone to destructive storms and flooding, due to its long coastline.
Flood Hits Vietnam Ahead Of APEC
Floods triggered by the storm hit Vietnam days before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. World leaders are expected to meet this week for the summit. US President Donald Trump, China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin are among the Asia-Pacific leaders who will be attending.
Trump arrived in Beijing Wednesday and will head to Vietnam later this week.
