Nghe An, Vietnam: Typhoon Doksuri has hit Vietnam’s central coast on Friday, the heavy rainfall and winds resulted in a landfall. A mass evacuations took place as officials predicted it could be the most powerful storm in ten years.
The storm tore down the trees and local authorities cut power in some areas to avoid accidents as residents remained in their homes lying down.”The kids stayed at home and there’s not much in the markets. I bought enough instant noodles for the family, so I think we’re good,” Nghe An resident Nguyen Thi Hue (58) told AFP, as per a report by TOI.
Typhoon Doksuri had winds with a speed of 165 kilometers per hour (102 miles per hour) before it pounded central coast on Friday morning, according to the Hong Kong Observatory, which classified Doksuri as a “severe typhoon”.
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One person died in Hue province swept away in a river following heavy rains in the area and died, according to the local government’s website. A three-year-old child was also injured after the roof blew off her house, the website added.
More than 79,000 people were evacuated across four provinces expected to be hardest hit, the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority said. It earlier predicted the storm could be the worst to hit Vietnam in a decade.
“The provinces are focusing on evacuating remaining households to ensure people’s safety,” Agriculture Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong said on state-run Vietnam Television (VTV).
“We also need to encourage fishermen to leave their boats, it could be harmful to their lives,” he added.
Vietnam is routinely hit by tropical storms from around May to October, with its central coast most frequently affected.
The Southeast Asian nation has already been hit by severe weather this year, with 140 people dead or missing in natural disasters since January, according to official figures.