Vietnam braces for storm Barijat

By Xuan Hoa   September 11, 2018 | 02:15 am PT
Vietnam braces for storm Barijat
A flooded town seen in the wake of tropical storm in Thanh Hoa in August. The north central province has been forecast to receive direct impacts from another storm, Barijat. Photo by VnExpress/Hai Binh
A tropical depression that has escalated to a storm is forecast to hit Vietnam’s north and central provinces Friday.

The depression gained strength after entering the East Sea, known internationally as the South China Sea, becoming the fifth storm to form in Vietnamese waters this year.

As of 7 a.m. on Tuesday, Barijat, as the storm has been named, was around 850 kilometers (528 miles) southeast of China's Hainan Island, carrying maximum wind speeds of 75 km (46 miles) per hour, according to the National Center for Hydrometeorological Forecasting.

Over the next 24 hours, Barijat will head northwest at 15 kilometers per hour and continue strengthening.

By 7 a.m. Friday morning, the center of the tropical storm will be off the coast of northern and central provinces from Quang Ninh to Thanh Hoa, with maximum wind speeds unchanged, the center predicts. Quang Ninh is home to the popular Ha Long Bay.

Forecasted route of storm Barijat by the National Center for Hydrometerological Forecasting.

Forecasted route of storm Barijat by the National Center for Hydrometerological Forecasting.

The Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control has asked relevant authorities to stay in contact with fishing boasts in their jurisdictions as a precaution and ensure safety of residents in storm-prone areas.

Another tropical storm named Mangkhut, lashing off the coast of the Philippines, is also set to strengthen and become a super typhoon. It is more likely that Mangkhut will enter the East Sea over the next four days.

Weather forecasters in Vietnam have predicted that around four to six typhoons and tropical depressions could develop off the country's east coast from now until the end of the year. Around two to three storms will make landfall in Vietnam and batter the central region, they have said.

Last month, typhoon Bebinca turned into a tropical depression after it made landfall in Thanh Hoa, bringing heavy downpours and gusty winds lasting many hours, killing 10 people in north-central region and northern highlands.

Vietnam was struck by a record-breaking number of 16 tropical storms in 2017 that left 389 people dead or missing and injured 668 others, mostly in northern and central regions. Damrey, one of the most destructive storms last year, hit the country in November and killed at least 106 people.

 
 
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