Bangkok (EFE).- The authorities in Vietnam ordered the evacuation of thousands of people Sunday against the imminent arrival of Typhoon Bualoi, which left at least 14 dead in the Philippines.
The Vietnamese National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said the storm was moving very quickly, at almost double the usual speed, and was expected to make landfall in the central part of the country later in the day.
In the city of Hue, authorities looked to evacuate 9,977 people concentrated mainly in coastal communes and lagoons, where the risk of deep flooding and isolation is very high, according to the state-owned broadcaster VTV.
Another 1,530 people were to be evacuated in the central province of Quang Tri. Bualoi’s arrival also led to the closure of four airports in the center of the country, including Dong Hoi and Quang Tri.
Heavy rains associated with the approaching typhoon have already affected parts of the country, especially Hue, where according to VTV a woman remains missing after being dragged away by swelling waters.
Typhoon Bualoi hit the eastern coast of the Philippines on Friday causing at least 14 deaths and leading to the evacuation of more than 350,000 people, according to the latest data from the
National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, before heading towards Vietnam.
Typhoons are recurrent phenomena in Southeast Asia, when the warm waters of the Pacific Ocean promote the formation of cyclones.
In late August, Typhoon Kajiki left at least seven people dead and 34 injured, while damaging some 10,000 homes and more than 81,500 hectares of rice crops in the country, whereas authorities in the city of Hanoi evacuated half a million inhabitants.
The Southeast Asian country was severely hit by Typhoon Yagi – considered the most powerful typhoon in Vietnam in three decades – in September last year, leaving more than 300 people dead from rains and landslides. EFE
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