Phu Yen-Binh Thuan provinces brace for tropical storm Damrey
VGP – An urgent meeting was held in Ha Noi on November 3 to discuss measures to cope with Storm Damrey which was forecast to hit the south-central coastal area from Phu Yen to Binh Thuan province.
At 10am on November 3, the eye of the storm was 400km east of the south-central coastal area with wind speeds of 135kph.
It is forecast to make landfall from South Phu Yen to North Binh Thuan before weakening to become tropical pressure on November 4.
With the storm impact, provinces from Quang Tri to Binh Thuan have heavy rains on November 3. From November 4-8, floods are likely to occur on rivers from Ha Tinh to Binh Thuan, the Central Highlands and the Dong Nai river. Flash floods, landslides and large-scale floods are predicted to strike provinces from Thua Thien-Hue to Khanh Hoa and northern Central Highlands.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong tasked relevant agencies to pay more attention to make round-the-clock checks to safeguard and operate reservoirs to prevent incidents.
Border guards of Khanh Hoa and Binh Dinh provinces should immediately call on 40 fishing vessels which are working at sea to go onshore and ban fishing boats from heading out to sea.
Localities are required to implement preventive measures and evacuate local residents out of dangerous areas, said Minister Cuong.
As schedule, over 75,000 households will be evacuated to safer place including 93,000 local residents in Binh Thuan, 92,000 in Khanh Hoa, and 85,000 in Phu Yen.
The three provinces ordered a sea ban from November 2. All pupils in Khanh Hoa province were off school from 12am on November 3.
*The same day, Deputy PM Trinh Dinh Dung directly inspected preventive work for the 12th tropical storm in the South Central Coast.
The Deputy PM planned to chair a video-teleconference in Khanh Hoa province with Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention on prevention and response to the tropical storm./.
By Kim Anh
