ReliefWeb

Typhoon Frankie, the first major storm to hit Vietnam this year, struck the northern part of the country on 24 July. The most affected provinces are Nam Ha, Thai Binh and Ninh Binh provinces, where heavy rains caused floods, and the wind hit the ports hard, damaging 354 fishing boats. The Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control has provided a consolidated report on the impact of the typhoon as of 28 July. The report states that 41 people have died, 224 are injured and 24 are missing. 22,310 houses collapsed, whilst 194,651 houses were submerged. Approx. 8,000 classrooms were affected by the impact, as well as approx. 2,400 hospital rooms. The committee also reports the loss of 37,755 ha of rice fields, whilst 177,875 ha of rice fields were submerged. Also roads, water resources and electricity equipment have been affected. (UN DHA, 29 Jul 1996)

The UNDP Resident Representative in Hanoi reports that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs today released the following information on the two above mentioned typhoons. On 24 July typhoon Frankie hit Thai Binh, Nam Ha and Ninh Binh provinces. And caused severe damage. Also the provinces of Hai Phong, Than Hoa, Quang Ninh, Ha Tay And Hai Hung were affected. On 22 august Typhoon Nikki struck the north-central coast of Viet Nam. However, it was reported that Nikki lost much of its strength and proceeded inland as a minor rainstorm. The authorities report a total of 194 people killed and 446 injured. More than 40,000 houses were completely destroyed, whilst more than 483,000 houses were damaged. Over 450,000 hectar of crops were damaged, with 50,000 hectar of fields completely lost. No appeal for international assistance was made by the Government of Viet Nam. (UN DHA, 23 Aug 1996)

The Disaster Management Unit of the Vietnamese Government provided consolidated damage and needs assessment for Typhoon Frankie (24 July), Tropical Low Pressure Storm (13 August) and Typhoon Niki (22 August). For Typhoon Sally (9 September) which brought rains and flooding to the northern provinces of the country, the complete damage assessment is not yet available. Damage has been massive, including 395 confirmed deaths and over 45,000 houses collapsed. The hardest hit provinces were Thai Binh, Nam Ha and Thanh Hoa. Approximately 500,000 ha of rice fields were submerged. Extensive damage to infrastructure was reported, such as earth dikes and road embankments being washed away, telephone and electricity wires being broken and missing. Total estimated damages amount USD 296 million. Government reported that, among other things, the most pressing needs are to repair /rebuild the collapsed houses and to provide food (approximately 41,000 tons). Using standard unit costs provided by the government, estimated accumulated humanitarian needs total USD 54 million. (UN DHA, 14 Sep 1996)