Downpours of up to 300mm were expected to blanket northern provinces and the central province of Thanh Hoa as tropical storm Mangkhut made landfall.

The storm brought heavy rains to Ha Noi yesterday afternoon and caused bad weather along the central coastline.

Deputy Director of the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting Le Thanh Hai said that the stretch of coast from Quang Ninh Province to Thanh Hoa Province was expected to be buffeted by waves of 3-4 metres high.

Mountainous provinces including Dien Bien, Hoa Binh, Lao Cai, Phu Tho and Yen Bai had been put on the alert for flash floods and landslides triggered by the storm, he said.

The downpours were predicted to last at least two days, he said.

At 1pm yesterday, the eye of the storm was about 190km from the Hai Phong – Thanh Hoa coast, with wind speeds reaching 62-88km per hour.

The storm is moving northwest at a speed of 20-25km per hour.

The centre said Mangkhut was expected to weaken to a tropical low pressure front this afternoon, with wind speeds forecast to ease to 39km per hour.

The Ministry of Public Security yesterday ordered all units to be available to help areas affected by the storm, and prepare for search and rescue activities.

Hoang Van Thang, deputy minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and vice chairman of the National Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention and Control, ordered preparations to be complete by 6pm yesterday.

Chairman of the Nam Dinh People's Committee Nguyen Van Tuan suspended all meetings yesterday to focus on preparations for the storm.

Tuan ordered authorised agencies to evacuate dangerous areas and instruct 2,100 offshore fishing vessels to find safe anchorage. Local dykes were reinforced a few days ago.

Head of the Nghe An People's Committee also directed local police to work with relevant agencies to overcome traffic problems if floods occurred.

In the northern province of Thai Binh, vessels were banned from going out to sea yesterday morning to ensure the safety of local fishermen.

Localities overcome consequences of storm No6

Storm No6 made landfall in northern coastal provinces on the evening of August 7 with strong gusts of wind from 62-88kph and then weakened into tropical low pressure.

Authorities in Haiphong, Quang Ninh, Nam Dinh, Thai Binh, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, and Ha Tinh provinces have strictly banned fishing vessels and fishermen from setting out to sea and are well prepared to evacuate local people out of danger areas.

Nghe An, even not in the eye of the storm, reports that more than 4,000 fishing boats with nearly 19,000 fishermen on board have found shelter.

It was forecast that there would be heavy rain in some mountainous areas of the province.

On August 8, local provincial Committee for Flood and Storm Prevention and Control (CFSPC) and Committee for Search and Rescue (CSR) claimed to have successfully rescued two fishing boats.

In Ha Tinh, a fishing boat remains in distress south of Son Duong Island as local search and rescue teams could not get there due to strong winds and heavy seas.

Meanwhile, heavy rain has hit Haiphong City, causing floods in some main streets. Off the coast of Do Son district, the sea water surged up to 7-8m high, sweeping away one of curious onlookers.

By August 7, nearly 10,600 fishing vessels and 500 tourism boats in Quang Ninh province had been instructed to stay put.

Search and rescue forces in the northern coastal provinces are actively helping local people overcome the consequences of Storm No6. They are still at risk of possible flash floods and landslides in some mountainous areas.

Source: VNS/VOV