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Viet Nam: Floods - Nov 1999

Statut
Passé
Pays
Viet Nam
Types de catastrophes
Inondation

Vietnam's seasonal flooding began with Storm No. 9 (Eve) hitting the Central Provinces between 18th and 20th October. This affected eight provinces - Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh. Throughout the latter part of the month, flood water levels continued to rise on several major rivers in the central provinces, to above Alarm Levels II and III. [...] Heavy rainfall has continued to saturate the six central provinces of Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh with between 300 - 500mm of rain over the last few days. On the 1st and 2nd of November, flood levels have exceeded Alarm Level II and III in the central provinces from Nghe An to Binh Dinh. Flood water level on the Huong River in Hue was 5.38m, 1.86m above Alarm Level III, about 0.5m above the historic level in 1983 and is predicted to rise by a further one full metre in the coming 24 hours. The streets of the historic town are flooded to levels of up to three metres in places. Telecommunications have been cut with the province and outlying areas are completely inaccessible. In Quang Nam, the flood water level on the Vu Gia River was 0.56m above Alarm Level III. In Quang Tri, Quang Binh and Binh Dinh, major rivers in each province were at, or above, Alarm Level III. In Quang Ngai, flood water level was 1m above Alarm Level II. Many families are reported to be waiting on the roofs of their houses to be rescued in Hue and other provinces. The historic town of Hoi An is also seriously flooded. By early morning of 2 November, the offices of the Red Cross in Hue and Quang Tri were flooded by over 1m of water in Hue and 0.5m in Quang Tri. No confirmation of the number of lives lost, persons missing or material losses is available at this time, but judging from previous years, figures are likely to be high. (IFRC, 2 Nov 1999)

On 5 November the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC) reported at least 233 deaths resulting from more than a fortnight of flooding in central Vietnam. Accurate figures are impossible owing to interrupted communication lines, but it is known that more than 255,299 houses have collapsed and 15,000 households have been evacuated. At least 6,477 ha of paddy fields have been damaged by the deluge, and 5,588 ha definitively lost. According to the CCFSC, 32,830 tons of food have gone to waste. (OCHA, 5 Nov 1999)

Provisional statistics provided by the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC) as of 7 November estimate that 535 people have died as a result of the fortnight's flooding, 324 of whom lived in the province of Thua Thien Hue. Accurate figures are impossible owing to interrupted communication lines, but it is known that more than 8,346 houses have collapsed and another 604,204 others have been affected. 15,000 people have been evacuated. (OCHA, 9 Nov 1999)

One month after the worst floods Vietnam has experienced this century, new, extensive floods have been an additional blow to the same region. This second bout of flood occurred just as relief and rehabilitation measures were being undertaken in order to help stabilize the lives of the people affected by the previous floods. According to the update issued by the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC) on 8 December, the new floods caused by heavy rainfall from 1 to 6 December once again attained historical water levels in some rivers in the central provinces from Thua Thien Hue to Khanh Hoa, unsurpassed in the last 40 years. Quang Ngai and Quang Nam are the two most seriously affected provinces; here rainfall averaged as much as 2,000 mm and caused destructive inundation. On 7 December the rainfall diminished and floodwater levels in all the rivers of the central provinces have been receding. According to the Hydro-Meteorological Service forecast, floodwater levels in the rivers flowing through Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh will remain at alarm level III, while rivers in the other provinces will remain at alarm level II or below. (OCHA, 10 Dec 1999)