Central regions have been battered by heavy rains over the last few days, leaving two people dead as of December 10.
One of the first areas to be hit was Da Nang which, according to local media, experienced an extended period of rain that started at around 3am last Sunday, December 9. This overwhelmed Da Nang’s drainage system, leading to widespread flooding in the entire city. The rain continued well into the afternoon and evening in some neighborhoods, wreaking havoc on local life and traffic.
Since then, two people have died in Quang Ngai Province while three others were reported missing in the central region yesterday, according to the Office of the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control. The heavy rains have also inundated nearly 5,000 houses and killed thousands of livestock.
To ensure the safety of local students, on the afternoon of December 9, the Da Nang Department of Education and Training decided to shut down all public schools and universities in town on December 10.
Experts from the National Center of Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting confirmed that the areas dreary weather was due to an enhanced cold front that affected central provinces from Khanh Hoa to Da Nang. At some locations in the city, rainfall reached 300-400 millimeters from 3am to 7am. The Le Do-Dien Bien Phu-Nguyen Thi Phuong underpass was closed by local authorities as the water level reached one meter in the area.
These dire weather patterns are getting more common in recent years. Just a few weeks ago, Typhoon Usagi also swept through southern Vietnam with Saigon among the hardest hit. The result was more than 24 hours of rain and historic level of water in the city.
[Photo via Tuoi Tre]
