HANOI: Historic floods across central and the Central Highlands region of Vietnam have left 68 people dead or missing, with preliminary economic losses estimated at more than VNĐ8.98 trillion (over US$340 million).
As of 6am Saturday (Nov 22), the disaster had claimed 55 lives and left 13 people unaccounted for, rising by 13 compared to the day before, according to the latest report by the Directorate of Dyke Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment.
Dak Lak suffered the heaviest loss – with 27 fatalities, followed by Khanh Hoa Province with 14, and Lam Dong and Gia Lai provinces with five each. The death toll also includes two each in Thua Thien Hue and Danang cities. Among the missing are eight people in Dak Lak, two in Khanh Hoa, two in Danang and one in Quang Tri Province.
The economic devastation by the historic deluge is extensive and continues to rise, as total losses rises by threefold, from the estimated $114 million on Friday to upwards of $340 million on Saturday.
Some 946 houses have been reported damaged, and more than 28,460 homes remain inundated, mainly in Dak Lak (11,586) and Khanh Hoa (10,374), and Gia Lai (6,500).
Agricultural losses are severe, with 79,908 hectares of rice and crops affected and another 100,014 hectares of perennial and annual plants damaged. An estimated 3.24 million livestock and poultry have died or been swept away, while 1,157 hectares of aquaculture areas have been affected.
Transport infrastructure also took a serious blow. Sixteen points along national highways and 180 locations on provincial and inter-communal roads remain flooded or blocked by landslides. Rail services have also been curtailed, with eight passenger trains halted on Friday (Nov 21) and six more suspended on Saturday.
Electricity outages continue to affect 377,002 customers across the region.
Authorities warn that rainfall and flooding remain complicated and could worsen. Local governments are continuing to assess damage and coordinate recovery efforts.
Politburo member and Permanent Member of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat Tran Cam Tu is expected to inspect flood recovery operations in Khanh Hoa on Saturday.
A day earlier, the Government deployed three working groups to oversee emergency response and relief efforts: Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh in Dak Lak, Deputy Prime Minister Ho Quoc Dung in Lam Đong and Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long in Gia Lai.
The Prime Minister also issued Decision No. 2549 approving an emergency allocation of VNĐ700 billion ($26.6 million) to four hardest-hit localities: Khanh Hoa and Lam Dong will each receive VNĐ200 billion, while Gia Lai and Dak Lak will receive VNĐ150 billion each. - Vietnam News/ANN
