VietNamNet Bridge - With a higher frequency of big rains, thunderstorms and whirlwinds, the southern region in Vietnam this year has seen the most extreme weather patterns of the last 40 years.

 

The 170 mm rainfall in Bien Hoa on Tuesday September 8 turned areas in the city into rivers, something that locals had never seen in years.

The rainfall which lasted many hours put major roads such as Nguyen Ai Quoc, Dong Khoi, Duong Tu Giang and Bui Van Hoa under water. 

In some areas, water flowed into houses, thus forcing people to evacuate to avoid damages.

In HCM City, many streets became inundated after a big rain on September 9.

Nguyen Minh Giam, deputy director of Southern Region Hydrometeorology Center, who has 40 years of experience in the job, said she had never seen such a big rain in Bien Hoa.

Giam predicted that HCM City and other southern provinces would see more big rains in the following days.

The weather forecasts released by the hydrometeorology center in recent days have mentioned the extreme weather. 

Giam said the most important causes were uncontrolled industrial production and deforestation, which has led to climate change. All these factors have made the weather more unpredictable.

In mid-July, northern provinces also suffered from terrible floods caused by big rainfall within a short time.

The big rains and floods caused 28 deaths. Three people were missing. 

In Quang Ninh province alone, 17 people died from the floods. More than 120 houses drifted away, nearly 3,700 houses were inundated, and over 10,000 hectares of crops were damaged.

The coal mining industry in Quang Ninh province alone reported a loss of VND1.2 trillion.

State management agencies estimated that the initial damage caused by the floods in the northeast in late July and early August was VND2.7 trillion.

Scientists noted that the climate change had become more severe: heavy drought occurred in the central region and Central Highlands and whirlpools took place in Hanoi, while big rains and floods occurred in northern mountainous areas and rains in Dong Nai and HCM City. 

Truong Manh Tien, chair of the Vietnam Economics & Environment Association, said the extreme weather was the heavy price people had to pay for abuse of non-renewable resources, especially coal and oil.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has reported that extensive flooding from the storms brought about by climate change was destroying the livelihoods of the nation’s rice farmers.

TBKTSG