Typhoon Dianmu casualties up to 7

By Hai Binh, Toan Dao   August 21, 2016 | 06:30 am PT
Typhoon Dianmu casualties up to 7
Yen Bai Province has been the hardest hit after Typhoon Dianmu swept through northern Vietnam on August 19. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh
Two are missing and thousands of homes have been damaged.

After sweeping through northern Vietnam on August 19, Typhoon Dianmu caused heavy downpours and inundation with flood alert recorded at highest level in Lao Cai and Yen Bai provinces.

As of August 21, seven people have been killed, two are missing and eight injured.

More than 40 houses have been destroyed, 651 are damaged and another 1,511 are submerged. Many roads, including highway 15C through Thanh Hoa Province have been jammed due to flooding and 14 bridges are broken. 

As the flood waters subsided, Hanoi Railway Transport Company resumed operations of the railway connecting the capital to Lao Cai Province on Sunday. Sapa in Lao Cai is a popular destination for local and foreign tourists.

Because trains to and from Lao Cai were suspended on Saturday afternoon and night, passengers had to resort to buses instead.

Heavy rains damaged over 10,000ha of crops while thousands of livestock were washed away. 

Several areas experienced blackouts, especially Hanoi, Quang Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Lang Son and Hoa Binh.  

Northern Vietnam has seen less rain and flooding today but the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting says landslide risks remain in Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Son La, Hoa Binh and Thanh Hoa. Flood alert will stay between levels 1 and 2 tonight, meaning low lying agricultural crops may be damaged and lives of communities in such areas could be at risk.

Typhoon Dianmu arrived at Vietnam's coastal provinces on August 19 at a speed of up to 88km/hr and has reduced to a low-pressure system as it made landfall in the evening of the same day. 

It's the third typhoon of the season. The second typhoon, Nida, caused landslides and flash floods in northern Vietnam, stranding tourists in the popular mountainous town Sapa. Mirinae, the first to hit Vietnam this year, claimed the lives of seven people, injured 63 and felled about 1,000 trees across the capital just last month.

The monsoon season in northern Vietnam lasts from August to November and experiences on average 12 to 13 typhoons and low pressure systems.

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