Viet Nam: Floods - Dec 1999

Combined cold air currents and strong easterly winds over Thua Thien Hue and stretching as far south as Khanh Hoa, have caused such heavy rainfall that the central provinces of Vietnam are facing a renewed bout of floods. Mean rainfall between 1 to 6 December averaged 300 - 500 mm in Thua Thien Hue province, 600-1000 mm in Quang Ngai, Quang Nam, Da Nang and Khanh Hoa provinces, and in some parts of Quang Ngai and Quang Nam rainfall averaged as much as 2000 mm. The rains caused flash floods in mountainous areas. Notably the Tra Khuc River in Quang Ngai reached levels unsurpassed since 1964 (alarm level III), and river levels in Quang Ngai and Khanh Hoa were higher than any recorded for these provinces over the last 40 years. Since 6 December rainfall has diminished and water levels in rivers flowing through Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Da Nang and Binh Dinh are now fluctuating around alarm level III, while in the other affected provinces they have descended to alarm level II and below. However, the coastal delta areas of Quang Nam, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh are still seriously flooded. Details of flooding and inundation in the central provinces are as follows: Quang Nam Province: the provincial capital and four other districts are under water. Hundreds of houses are flooded and tens of thousands of people cannot return to their homes. Evacuees are in need of food, medicine and other basic items. Quang Ngai Province: 15 communes situated in delta districts and 58 communes in mountainous districts are inaccessible to relief workers. Binh Dinh Province: Hoai Nhon District and areas surrounding Quy Nhon City have been isolated by flood waters. (OCHA, 7 Dec 1999)

To date, 115 people have died, over 5,390 houses have been swept away and over 397,000 are reported to have suffered serious damage. The situation is the worst in Quang Nam and Quang Ngai provinces. Over 6,000 households had to be evacuated in Quang Nam and over 5,000 households in Quang Ngai. In the provincial capitals of Quang Ngai Town and Tam Ky, in Quang Nam, many areas were under 1 to 2 metres of water. In Quang Ngai virtually all paddy fields were inundated with 2.5 to 3.5m of water. Many remote areas are still inaccessible. In Thua Thien Hue over 54,000 houses were flooded, but the situation is reported as "being under control". In the provinces of Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa tens of thousand of households have been flooded and infrastructure and telecommunications has suffered severe damage. For the second time in a month, people have been forced to flee their homes and seek shelter under plastic sheeting distributed by the Vietnam Red Cross (VNRC) and the authorities, their blankets, clothing and food reserves washed away or destroyed by mud. For a second time, their livelihoods have been destroyed. Their paddy fields -- in some cases replanted with their few remaining resources or through relief handouts or loans -- have once again been swamped. They will surely miss the next cropping season, which must be completed in three weeks' time. The longer-term effect is a potential food deficit within the region, but more significantly, a shortage of food among many poor families for the next three to nine months seems inevitable. (IFRC, 10 Dec 1999)