The storm is expected to make landfall at 10 a.m. Tuesday over the area between Hai Phong City and Thanh Hoa Province.
In Do Son in Hai Phong, a car dealership on Dien Bien Phu Street has reinforced its large glass front with bamboo poles and tape to withstand the strong winds.
In Do Son Ward near the coast, where the winds are already strong, wooden planks are nailed over the glass doors of a seaside restaurant.
Staff at a karaoke bar near Do Son beach stuff cloth towels into window gaps to keep out water and wind.
At Tran Dat’s house in Do Son Ward, an excavator has been used to anchor the metal roof for fear it could be blown away as it was during Typhoon Yagi in 2024.
In Sam Son Ward in Thanh Hoa province, residents use sandbags for reinforcement and tie down doors to resist the strong winds and rising water. Many shops have closed since the night of July 20 following government orders to prepare for the typhoon.
Dung, the owner of a shop near Do Son beach, said: “After Typhoon Yagi, people here no longer take storms lightly. We always reinforce our houses and secure our belongings whenever a storm warning is issued.”
Police, militia, youth union members, and others have been helping fishermen haul their boats onto Ho Xuan Huong Street to shelter them from the storm.
Lieutenant Colonel Trinh Tu Vuong and Major Nguyen Huu Long of the Sam Son border guard station help fishermen anchor their boats at Lach Hoi storm shelter.
Vuong said his unit has mobilized all its personnel. All of Sam Son’s fishing boats have been brought ashore and securely anchored even as the province issued a ban on boats going out to sea on the morning of July 21.
At Ninh Co Port in Ninh Binh, preparations are underway at full speed. The port has two storm shelters capable of holding over 200 boats.
According to the Ninh Binh sub-department of fisheries and fisheries surveillance, the province has 1,861 fishing boats and 5,724 workers.
By 4 p.m. on July 20, 1,695 of the boats and 5,232 workers had returned to shore, with the rest on their way back.
Bach Long Vi island was battered by heavy rains and strong winds on Monday morning. Boats have been transported ashore by authorities. People tied down small boats to concrete posts to prevent them from being damaged.
According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, after entering the Gulf of Tonkin on the morning of July 21, Storm Wipha could strengthen as it approaches the coast of Hai Phong and Thanh Hoa.
It is expected to bring heavy rain, including over 600 mm in some places, especially in the northeast and the mountainous areas of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces.
