Vietnam – 2 Dead, 1 Missing After Floods in Central Areas

Tropical Depression Kirogi made landfall in south eastern Vietnam on 19 November. Although the storm dissipated over land later that day, some central areas of the country have seen heavy rainfall which has led to flooding in Thua Thien Hue and Quang Tri provinces. According to Vietnam’s Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, 2 people drowned in flooding in central Thua Thien Hue province. Another person was swept away by flood water and is still missing. Over 8,000 homes have been flooded, nearly all of them in Thua Thien Hue and around 300 in central Quang Tri province, where some crops and aquaculture have also suffered. Flooding has also damaged several hundred metres of embankments of the River Hieu in Cam Lo district, Quang Tri province. Some areas of Thua Thien Hue and Quang Tri provinces recorded around 300 mm of rain in a 24 hour period to 21 November. Local media reported that reservoirs in the central region and the central highlands region had released water to cope with high levels of water. Vietnam has been struggling to deal with a seemingly endless stream of storms – Doksuri, Khanun, Damrey, Haikui and Kirogi – since September this year.