After barrelling into the eastern Philippines , Typhoon Nesat is makingits way towards storm-battered Vietnam , which is currently in thegrip of Tropical Depression Haitang.
"Nesat is likely to be the strongest storm for years in Vietnam ,equivalent to deadly typhoon Xangsane that hit Da Nang in 2006,"said Le Thanh Hai, deputy director of the National Centre forHydro-meteorological Forecasting.
Typhoon Xangsane killed 72 people and caused damage worth 10 trillion VND (630 million USD at the 2006 exchange rate).
Wind speeds of 149kph have been recorded, making Nesat a grade 13hurricane on the Beaufort scale. However, wind speeds are expected todrop to 135kph (grade 12) when the weather system makes landfall innorthern Vietnam on Sept. 30 night or Oct. 1 morning, Hai said.
"The possibility [of the typhoon making landfall] is high, about 70 per cent," he said.
After hitting Luzon Island in the Philippines on Sept. 27morning, Nesat changed course and is now heading in a north-westerlydirection.
The typhoon, which is currently churningup the East Sea , is expected to reach China 's Hainan Islandearly on Sept. 30 before entering Vietnamese waters, according tointernational weather experts.
Meanwhile, strongmonsoon winds are also expected to hit Vietnam about the same timeas Nesat – no bad thing in terms of wind speeds, but likely to bringtorrential rain.
"If the strong monsoon winds comefirst, they might weaken Nesat before the typhoon makes landfall but itis too soon to say," Hai said.
The NationalCommittee for Search and Rescue on Sept. 27 ordered local governmentoffices to evacuate residents from low-lying areas and advise fishingvessels not to venture out to sea. Coastal authorities have also beentold to ensure dykes and dams are in good condition.
Meanwhile, Storm Haitang claimed the life of a 31-year-old fisherman inPhu Yen and two others in Thua Thien-Hue before making landfall incentral Vietnam at dawn on Sept. 27 and weakening to a tropicaldepression.
Haitang unleashed floods, toppled treesand damaged houses in Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue provincesand led to a number of major rivers almost breaching their banks.
Some 700 Ruc ethnic people in Quang Tri's Thuong Hoa Commune wereisolated after the only road linking them with the outside world wasinundated, local officials reported./.
"Nesat is likely to be the strongest storm for years in Vietnam ,equivalent to deadly typhoon Xangsane that hit Da Nang in 2006,"said Le Thanh Hai, deputy director of the National Centre forHydro-meteorological Forecasting.
Typhoon Xangsane killed 72 people and caused damage worth 10 trillion VND (630 million USD at the 2006 exchange rate).
Wind speeds of 149kph have been recorded, making Nesat a grade 13hurricane on the Beaufort scale. However, wind speeds are expected todrop to 135kph (grade 12) when the weather system makes landfall innorthern Vietnam on Sept. 30 night or Oct. 1 morning, Hai said.
"The possibility [of the typhoon making landfall] is high, about 70 per cent," he said.
After hitting Luzon Island in the Philippines on Sept. 27morning, Nesat changed course and is now heading in a north-westerlydirection.
The typhoon, which is currently churningup the East Sea , is expected to reach China 's Hainan Islandearly on Sept. 30 before entering Vietnamese waters, according tointernational weather experts.
Meanwhile, strongmonsoon winds are also expected to hit Vietnam about the same timeas Nesat – no bad thing in terms of wind speeds, but likely to bringtorrential rain.
"If the strong monsoon winds comefirst, they might weaken Nesat before the typhoon makes landfall but itis too soon to say," Hai said.
The NationalCommittee for Search and Rescue on Sept. 27 ordered local governmentoffices to evacuate residents from low-lying areas and advise fishingvessels not to venture out to sea. Coastal authorities have also beentold to ensure dykes and dams are in good condition.
Meanwhile, Storm Haitang claimed the life of a 31-year-old fisherman inPhu Yen and two others in Thua Thien-Hue before making landfall incentral Vietnam at dawn on Sept. 27 and weakening to a tropicaldepression.
Haitang unleashed floods, toppled treesand damaged houses in Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue provincesand led to a number of major rivers almost breaching their banks.
Some 700 Ruc ethnic people in Quang Tri's Thuong Hoa Commune wereisolated after the only road linking them with the outside world wasinundated, local officials reported./.
