Vietnam honours fallen flood rescuers; 90 more dead and 34 missing due to floods, landslides

The special service for the soldiers was attended by top officials and held at the Funeral House of the 268 Military Hospital in Thua Thien Hue Province. - The Vietnam News/Asian News Network

HANOI, Oct 19 (The Vietnam News/ANN): A memorial service for the 13 officials and soldiers who were killed by a landslide in Thua Thien Hue Province took place on Monday morning in the central province.

Those who died had been dispatched to rescue workers who had become trapped when a landslide hit Rao Trang 3 Hydropower Plant. Their bodies were later found near the hydropower plant.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, on behalf of the Government, has sent his deepest condolences to the families and relatives of officers and soldiers.

After the morning's ceremony, the bodies of each person who perished will be transported back to their individual home towns for burial.

In other developments, Floods, landslides and other natural disasters triggered by more heavy downpours and it left 90 people dead and 34 others missing in Vietnam's central region over the past two weeks, the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control said on Monday.

The fatalities were mainly reported in the provinces of Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue and Quang Nam, according to the committee's latest report.

As of 6am local time Monday, around 37,500 households with 121,280 people in the localities of Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien Hue had been evacuated to safe areas. Some 121,700 houses were still inundated, the committee said.

Since Oct. 6, nearly 531,800 cattle and poultry have been killed or swept away. Natural disasters, including floods and landslides, also caused the erosion and damage in several national highways and local roads, said the committee.

Schools in the central Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces have allowed students to stay home starting from Monday to ensure safety amid the complicated situations of natural disasters, Vietnam News Agency reported.

Heavy rains are expected in central localities until Wednesday (Oct 21), with rainfall expected to be over 600 mm in some areas, generating high risks of floods, flash floods and inundation, the committee's report said.

During an urgent meeting held on Sunday, the committee issued a level-four alert, the second highest level of warning, over the risks of natural disasters in central Vietnam. - Vietnam News/Asian News Network