THOUSANDS EVACUATED AS TYPHOON VAMCO NEARS VIETNAM

Sat 14 November 2020:

A series of storms have hit central Vietnam over the past six weeks, causing flooding and landslides that have killed at least 159 people, authorities said, while 70 others are missing

Thousands of people fled their homes in Vietnam on Saturday as Typhoon Vamco barrelled towards central regions already pummelled by weeks of successive storms.

Airports have been shut, beaches closed, and a fishing ban put in place as the country braces for winds of up to 100 kilometres per hour (60 miles per hour) when the typhoon makes landfall on Sunday, likely close to Hue.

Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in four central provinces, according to the disaster management authority, while state media said hundreds of thousands more may have to flee.

“This is a very strong typhoon,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said, warning provinces in Vamco’s projected path to prepare for its impact.

‘No respite’

A series of storms have hit central Vietnam over the past six weeks, causing flooding and landslides that have killed at least 159 people, authorities said, while 70 others are missing.

The severe weather has also damaged or destroyed more than 400,000 homes, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Roads and bridges have been washed away, power supplies disrupted, and crucial food crops destroyed, leaving at least 150,000 people at immediate risk of food shortages, it added.

“There has been no respite for more than eight million people living in central Vietnam,” said Nguyen Thi Xuan Thu, Vietnam Red Cross Society president.

“Each time they start rebuilding their lives and livelihoods, they are pummeled by yet another storm.”

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