A reader from Singapore has offered heartfelt support for victims of typhoon Yagi in Vietnam, answering Tuoi Tre News' call for contributions to its relief fund.

“Everyone deserves to live in a peaceful and safe environment, to be with their loved ones, family and friends,” Chow Ee Huey wrote to Tuoi Tre News from Singapore. 

“The typhoon has wiped out not only the homes of these victims, but many have also lost their loved ones – grandchildren, a father, a grandmother, an aunt.

“It is just heart wrenching to watch as people mourn for the loss of their family members.

“There will never be a complete home again.

“As a foreigner who loves Vietnam, the culture and its people, I [thought I] had to do something.

"It takes very little to contribute, not buying that extra dress, sacrificing an expensive dinner, drinking a less premium beverage. These small inconveniences can help save lives.

“I am not just helping to rebuild their home, but I hope my actions can also give the Vietnamese people hope, faith and strength to pull through these difficult times. [I hope that Vietnamese people know] that we are supporting them.

“I believe with the unity, tenacity and kindness of Vietnamese people, they will overcome this disaster very soon. I wish Vietnam and its people peace and prosperity.”

Chow donated a total of SGD1,000 for the victims through Tuoi Tre’s donation program. (US$1 = S$1.29)

This is not the first time she has made a donation to help people in Vietnam. 

In April, after Tuoi Tre News published the story 'Siblings live in pigpen following family tragedy in northern Vietnam,' Chow contacted the newspaper and donated S$500 to support the children. 

It is also known that the expat community in Vietnam as well as foreign tourists traveling to the Southeast Asian country are supporting people here through the storm's wake.

Images of dozens of foreigners joining local authorities in mid-September to clean up the streets in Hanoi's Hoan Kiem District after typhoon Yagi have made headlines across Vietnam in recent times.

“Whilst my heart is breaking for the victims in the north, I also have seen entire communities come together to help others, literally, weather the storm," Ray Ksuchert, an Australian who has lived in Ho Chi Minh City for over ten years, wrote to Tuoi Tre News. 

"People working side by side, communities stopping work to stand beside their fellow citizens, and people risking their lives to save a stranger are what I admire about Vietnamese culture.

“I don’t have the ability to be there but I hope this message is read and shared amongst the thousands of people currently going through never-before seen challenges in some of these communities: every expat living in Vietnam admires your spirit and tenacity not to let this storm defeat you.”

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