Hanoi (VNA) – Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has signed off a dispatch directing the settlement of Typhoon Kajiki’s consequences as the storm has wreaked havoc on the northern part of central Vietnam.
Dispatch No. 147/CD-TTg, dated August 25, was sent to leaders of central Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, and Quang Tri provinces, northern Ninh Binh province, ministries, ministry-level bodies, Government agencies, and the Office of the National Steering Committee for Civil Defence.
It notes that on late August 25 afternoon, Typhoon Kajiki, the fifth to appear in the East Sea this year, made landfall in Nghe An and Ha Tinh, causing wind speeds of Level 10, gusting up to Level 15. Meanwhile, winds of Level 6–7, with gusts of Level 8, were recorded in Thanh Hoa and Quang Tri.
Rainfall of 200–300mm occurred in Ninh Binh, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Quang Tri, and Hung Yen. Notably, downpours of 300–400mm within 24 hours, from 7pm on August 24, were reported in Ha Tinh, even reaching 500–600mm in some places. The storm also damaged some houses, public facilities, and power grids in Ha Tinh, triggering widespread blackout in 60 of the 69 wards and communes of this province.
The storm circulation is likely to continue causing heavy rains through August 26 in mountainous, midland, and Red River Delta areas, posing very high risks of severe inundation, flash floods, and landslides, particularly in Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, and Ha Tinh, according to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.
Facing that fact, PM Chinh demanded leaders of the abovementioned localities and agencies to push ahead with mobilising forces, equipment, and resources to quickly respond to subsequent downpours and floods and address consequences as soon as possible.
Leaders of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, and Quang Tri were told to carry out response plans appropriate to local conditions. In particular, residents in vulnerable areas, especially places susceptible to flooding, flash floods, and landslides, must be evacuated. Essential supplies must be ensured for displaced people, especially poor and disadvantaged households.
Besides, the PM emphasised the need to guarantee safety for irrigation and hydropower reservoirs, dams, and dykes while gearing up forces, vehicles, and equipment for rescue operations when necessary. Military, police, and youth union personnel should be deployed for assisting people to repair houses, schools, and health stations, clean up the environment, resume power, telecoms service, and water supply, and restore fisheries and agriculture to stabilise people’s livelihoods.
PM Chinh also requested the ministers of national defence and public security to order Military Region 4 and their units based in the provinces to ready personnel, vehicles, and equipment to support locals in addressing storm and flood consequences when needed.
In the dispatch, he also assigned specific tasks to the ministers of industry and trade, science and technology, agriculture and environment, education and training, health, and construction.
The Chief of the Office of the National Steering Committee for Civil Defence was assigned to work with agencies of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment to keep a close watch on the situation and proactively coordinate the deployment of human and material resources to support the affected localities.
Deputy PM Tran Hong Ha is in charge of directing response efforts by ministries, sectors, and localities, according to the dispatch./.
