Floods ravage north central region

By the morning of July 21, heavy rains and floods caused by Storm Son Tinh had left 10 people dead, 11 missing, and 14 injured in northern and north-central provinces.

According to the local Steering Committees for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, flooding had led to the collapse of 105 houses, while 3,328 houses are submerged and 1,018 houses have been evacuated. Approximately 16,893 cattle and poultry have been killed or were swept away, while 3,969 hectares of aquatic farms were affected.

The Department of Crop Production under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reported that as of 5pm on July 20, 39,000 hectares of farmland in the Red River Delta provinces were inundated, including 3,000 hectares in Nam Dinh province which are likely to be completely spoiled.

Meanwhile, 13,276 hectares of farmland in north-central provinces were flooded and 12,151 hectares of subsidiary crops have been ruined.

Tan Khai Hong, chairman of Tan Luon commune People’s Committee in Tan Son district, Phu Tho province said on July 21 that the floods have swept away one suspension bridge and damaged a concrete bridge in the district.

Luckily, no fatalities have been reported in Tan Son.

Phu Yen district in Son La province reported that at 8am on July 21 one person was missing and dozens of houses were submerged or have collapsed. Roads linking the district to many hamlets and communes have been blocked with debris and are impassible.

A landslide occurred on the morning of July 21 in Van Coi hamlet, Son La province burying three houses. Luckily, many people managed to escape before their houses collapsed. One person, Nguyen Van Ngoc, 57, is still missing. The district is mobilizing its forces and earth-moving machinery to search for the victim.

Prolonged heavy rains have also inundated many hectares of paddy fields.

According to the latest reports coming out of localities in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai, floods have left 10 people dead and 8 missing, and damaged nearly 3,900 houses, while 608 households have been evacuated to safer ground. More than 1,200 cattle and poultry have been killed in the floods. Total losses are estimated at around VND200 billion. The level of damage may rise when functional forces gain access to isolated areas.