Storm Rai weakens after landfall in central Vietnam
Thursday, September 15, 2016, 19:14 GMT+7
After making landfall in the central provinces of Quang Nam and Quang Ngai on early Tuesday, Storm Rai has been downgraded to a tropical depression.
At 4:00 am, the depression was located at 15.6 degrees latitude north and 108.2 degrees longitude east, with winds at 50-60 kph, according to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF).
Coastal eateries in Quang Nam had their roofs torn off or blown away with trees uprooted thanks to strong winds.
Rainfall of over 150 millimeters was recorded in several districts in the affected areas, namely Nam Dong District in the city of Hue with 240 millimeters, the weather center said.
Residents in the coastal commune of Tam Thanh in Quang Nam toldTuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters that strong winds and heavy rainfall began from around 11:00 pm on Monday, with winds as high as 11 on the Beaufort scale at around 2:00 am on Tuesday.
In the central city of Da Nang, many stands and tarps built for the 5thAsian Beach Games Danang 2016 (ABG 5-2016) to be hosted by Vietnam on September 24 were damaged by the storm.
Traveling west-northwestward at 15-20 kph, the depression is expected to weaken to a trough when entering southern Laos, the NCHMF forecast.
On Tuesday, provinces from Nghe An to Thua Thien-Hue will be drenched for the whole day in 50-150 millimeters of rain.
Thanks to the phenomenon, airlines had to cancel and reschedule flights to and from the central areas because of safety concerns.
Vietnam Airlines announced on Monday it would cancel Tuesday morning’s flights VN7641 and VN7640 to and from Chu Lai International Airport in Quang Nam.
It also delayed flights VN1613 and VN1612 to and from Hue City, and VN1370 and VN 1371 to and from the Central Highlands city of Pleiku.
According to Thua Thien-Hue Province’s Bureau of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, high waves sank a ship, QNg 0279, near Phu Loc District, though all crew members were rescued.
Two other ships were also sunk due to rough seas in the maritime area of Nghia An Commune in Quang Ngai at 12:30 pm on Monday, but no casualties were recorded.
