'Years of savings all gone': Typhoon Yagi leaves families empty-handed

Dien and his wife, Nguyen Thi Chi, had taken precautions two days before the storm's arrival by securing the roof of their house, which also served as a restaurant, with ropes. They also pruned trees around the house to reduce the risk of them being uprooted by strong winds.

By Saturday morning, as the super typhoon neared land, Dien closed his restaurant as most people decided to stay indoors. At 11:30 a.m., the winds began to howl, and torrential rain pounded the roof. As Dien glanced outside, he saw billboards and tree branches being tossed through the air. Suddenly, the gales blasted the doors open, forcing Dien, his wife and their eldest son to struggle to close and secure them.

Dien said his family took shelter in a storage room as the storm tore the roof off their house and flung it into the backyard. "My wife and our three children screamed and trembled in terror," he added, describing how they huddled together for two hours, enduring the onslaught of winds and rain.

When the storm finally passed, Dien's house was left drenched and destroyed. His 8-year-old daughter, Hoai Anh, was devastated to find her new schoolbooks ruined by rainwater, and her homework scattered by the wind. Her two brothers, aged 11 and 14, faced similar losses. Dien estimated the damage to his home and business at approximately VND150 million ($6,074).

"The restaurant, our only source of income, will have to close for repairs. We’ll need to replace our belongings and equipment to rebuild our lives," said the 35-year-old man.

His is among hundreds of families in northern Quang Ninh Province, home to UNESCO heritage site Ha Long Bay, who suffered severe losses after the typhoon made landfall on Saturday.

Around 2 km away, dozens of families in Cam Pha City suffered similar devastation. Many homes had their roofs torn off and doors warped beyond repair.

Tran Phi Cong had spent half a day preparing for the storm, confident his house could withstand it as it had done in the past. But when it hit, the roof shook violently. Cong rushed to secure the mobile phones in his store but had little time before its roof was ripped away as well.

"I was standing in a corner when I heard a loud noise and looked up to see the roof being blown off. I ran for cover, but a metal shard cut my arm," Cong said.

With the roof gone, everything inside his house was quickly destroyed by the storm. The television and computer were shattered, the three motorbikes were tossed on top of one another. Clothes were blown away as well.

"Years of savings and hard work are all gone," Cong said.

An area next to the Ha Long Park in Quang Ninh Province is devastated by typhoon Yagi. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy

Ha Long City also bore the brunt of Yagi's fury. Restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops near the Ha Long Park were devastated. On Sunday, the area remained a scene of wreckage.

Vu Van Luong, 60, spent the day salvaging what little remained of his seafood restaurant, located by the Ha Long coast. He had invested VND2 billion ($81,000) into the 700 m2 restaurant, which could host 300 customers. Now, the roof, billboards, and much of the interior were destroyed.

"I had to call all my employees today to apologize and let them go. It’s heartbreaking to lose everything and have to start over. My 14 employees are now out of work, unsure of what to do next," Luong said.

Having lived on the Ha Long coast for decades, Luong said he had never experienced such a powerful storm. Typically, storms would pass through Quang Ninh within one or two hours, but Yagi's assault lasted from noon until 6 p.m. before it moved on to Hai Duong Province.

According to the Quang Ninh People’s Committee, the typhoon left 19,500 homes in the province without roofs. Numerous vessels, electric poles, and trees were also damaged.

 

 

'Years of savings all gone': Typhoon Yagi leaves families empty-handed

Vietnamese residents share 'terrifying' experiences after Typhoon Yagi hits