Tropical depression off central Vietnam may become storm

The tropical depression was around 160 km to the southwest of Paracel Islands at around 1 p.m. Tuesday, according to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting. Its maximum wind speed was 39-61 kph, and it was moving northwest at 5 kph.

By 1 p.m. Wednesday, the tropical depression would be above sea regions from Quang Tri to Da Nang, and it may evolve into a storm then. It would be moving northwest at 10 kph at the time.

Rough seas and strong winds should be expected at sea. From Tuesday afternoon to Thursday morning, heavy rain would be seen in regions from Quang Tri to Quang Nam, as well as Ha Tinh, Quang Binh and Quang Ngai. From Thursday, the eastern parts of northern Vietnam and the northern parts of central Vietnam may see heavy rains, while rains would dwindle in the central parts of central Vietnam.

Rains and floods due to heavy rains have killed two people and forced over 7,600 people in Da Nang and Thua Thien-Hue to be evacuated over the past few days. Two fishing vessels sank off the coasts of central Vietnam, rendering 15 fishermen from Quang Nam missing. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing.

The National Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control has requested coastal localities from Thanh Hoa to Khanh Hoa to monitor the state of the tropical depression to prepare resources when needed.