A tropical depression forming earlier this week off southern China developed into a typhoon on Monday and is forecast to make landfall in northern Vietnam later this week.

The storm, named Bebinca, was situated in the maritime area south of China’s Guangdong Province as of 7:00 am on Tuesday, packing winds at 60 to 75km per hour and gusts at up to 100km an hour, the National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting reported.

This is the fourth storm to hit Vietnam this year, following Typhoon Son Tinh, which made landfall in north-central provinces in mid-July.

In the next 24 hours, Storm Bebinca will travel eastward before changing toward the northwest direction.

A map detailing the route of Typhoon Bebinca from August 14 to 17, 2018. Photo: National Center for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting

In the next 24 to 48 hours from that point, the storm will travel westward at 10km an hour and is expected to reach the north of the Gulf of Tokin as of 7:00 am on Thursday.

The storm is forecast to make landfall between Quang Ninh and Nam Dinh Provinces in the next 48 to 72 hours before weakening to a tropical depression.

Under the influence of the weather phenomenon, heavy downpours will dampen northern and north-central Vietnam from August 15 to 17, with average rainfall estimated at 250 to 350 millimeters, Le Thanh Hai, deputy head of the Meteorological and Hydrological Administration, said.

Rough seas will occur in the northern part of the East Vietnam Sea, Hai added.

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