Localities asked to be prepared against extreme weather after Storm Podul

Hanoi (VNA) – The Standing Office of the Central Steering Committee on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control has asked localities to continue applying measures to respond to the low pressure which is resulted from the weakening Storm Podul, the fourth arising in the East Sea so far this year.

According to the National Centre for Hydrometeorology Forecasting, Storm Podul became a low pressure after making it landfall in central provinces of Ha Tinh and Quang Binh in the small hours of August 30.

Due to the impact of the storm, provinces from Nghe An to Quang Tri suffered strong wind, while localities from Nghe An to Thua Thien-Hue saw heavy rains from 100-250mm.

In a meeting of the office on August 30, Deputy General Director of the Vietnam Disaster Management Authority Nguyen Truong Son said that Storm Podul unroofed 41 houses and destroyed 11 electricity poles in Ha Tinh province.

In Quang Binh, the storm sunk a vessel, but two crewmembers were rescued.

Son asked localities to work with the Border Guard Force to strictly control vessels before allowing them to set sail.

Tran Quang Nang, head of the Weather Forecast Office of theNational Centre for Hydrometeorology Forecasting, said that from September 2-3, a low pressure is likely to appear and may become another storm.

He added that northwest and northern localities may see extremely heavy rains.

The Border Guard High Command reported that its force in Quang Binh and Binh Dinh are coordinating with each other and families of crewmembers to search for two missing vessels from Binh Dinh.

As of 5:00am of August 30, one death was reported in Hanoi’s Tay Ho district due to a falling tree, while 37 houses in Anh Son district of Nghe An were damaged.-VNA