1. During
the night of 2 November 1997 Typhoon Linda hit South Vietnam affecting
all the Southwestern provinces where, for two days, there were strong rains,
in places as much as 100 -150 mm of rainfall. The typhoon was the strongest
recorded in the area for the last 100 years and caused unexpectedly huge
losses.
2. The
Government of Vietnam undertook every effort to warn populations in the
areas at risk. Thanks to these efforts, more than 3,500 fishermen were
rescued. The Government is also taking all measures to provide health and
other services to the affected population.
3. Due to the unexpectedly high loss in terms of both human lives and property, the Government of Vietnam issued an appeal for international assistance on 8 November 1997.
Damage Update
4. The following is an update of the information provided in the latest DHA Situation Report and is mainly from information prepared by the Disaster Management Unit of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Department of Dyke Management and Flood and Storm Control.
5. As of 13 November 1997, information on damage caused by the typhoon was as follows:
- 464 people killed, 857 people injured and 3,218 missing (or unaccounted for).
- 3,122 boats sunk and 774 boats missing.
- 76,609 houses destroyed and 139,445 houses damaged.
- 2,254 school rooms destroyed and 4,022 school rooms damaged.
- 349,232 rice paddies inundated.
National Response and Action Required
6. On receipt of information about Typhoon Linda on 1 November, the Government of Vietnam instructed Ho Chi Minh City and all provinces and ministries concerned to combat the effects of the typhoon. This has led to continuing and careful evaluation of the situation to determine accurately the number of people killed, missing and affected, the amount of damage in various sectors, and the needs dictated by the disaster.
7. As reported in DHA Situation Report No. 3, actions to be taken to mitigate the effects of the typhoon were search and rescue at sea to locate and rescue missing people, quick repair of damaged schools, hospitals and houses, location and salvage of sunken boats, the restoration of agricultural and marine products, repair of transportation and hydraulic systems, and continued damage assessment, establishment of plans and policies in connection with the disaster. These issues are being addressed by the Government of Vietnam.
8. A meeting regarding the disaster was convened yesterday, 13 November, by high level bodies, namely the Government of Vietnam, the Communist Party, the National Assembly and the Fatherland Fund. The diplomatic corps, the United Nations and others were invited. During this meeting the Government of Vietnam reiterated its request for sympathy and kind assistance of all Government and peoples, International Organizations and Non-Governmental Organizations.
Emergency Relief Needs
9. Official reports provided by the affected provinces to the Standing Office of the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control have been issued for the provinces of Soc Trang, Kien Giang, Ca Mau, Bac Lieu and Tra Vin. The assessed needs are shown in the table below.
| Province | Food | Medicine | Clothing | Shelter | Sanitation | Total USD |
| Soc Trang | 114,900 | 3,200 | 80,000 | 53,600 | 20,000 | 271,700 |
| Kien Giang | 30,000 | 8,000 | 11,600 | 24,000 | 13,200 | 86,800 |
| Ca Mau | 1,112,885 | 809,222 | 607,046 | 1,038,724 | 640,771 | 4,208,648 |
| Bac Lieu | 1,028,916 | 961,508 | 2,419,200 | 2,598,960 | 554,400 | 7,562,984 |
| Tra Vin | 41,280 | 8,400 | 33,200 | 38,320 | 97,120 | 218,320 |
| Total | 2,327,981 | 1,790,331 | 3,151,046 | 3,753,604 | 1,325,491 | 12,348,453 |
10. The individual items are:
- Food: rice, cooking oil, salt, cooking pots, stoves, etc.
- Medicine: antibiotics, anti-diarrhoea, disinfectants, bandages and aspirin.
- Clothing for children and adults.
- Shelter: tents, mattresses, blankets, mosquito netting, buckets, etc.
- Sanitation: temporary toilets, chemicals against insects and rodents.
Most items are available locally. More details are available from the Vietnam Disaster Management Unit (DMU), Ministry of Agriculture ad Rural Development, Hanoi (Tel. +84 4 824 1072, Fax +84 4 824 1795) or from DHA Geneva, on request.
International Response
11. In response to the Governments appeal for international assistance, the contributions below have been reported.
| UN SYSTEM | US DOLLARS | |
| DHA | Emergency grant | 50,000 |
| UNDP | Emergency grant | 150,000 |
| UNICEF | Cash | 50,000 |
| WHO | Medical support | 5,000 |
| GOVERNMENTS | ||
| Australia | Cash | 10,869 |
| Cash for restoration of economic activities | 217,391 | |
| China | Cash | 20,000 |
| France | Cash | 104,000 |
| JICA | Provision of relief goods including transport | 374,954 |
| Netherlands | Cash | 50,000 |
| Norway | Emegency cash contribution | 40,000 |
| Republic of Korea | Cash | 100,000 |
| Russian Federation | Air delivery of medicines, food and tents | 350,000 |
| Switzerland | Cash for relief | 380,000 |
| UK | Emergency relief items: food, shelter, medicines, clothing. | 80,515 |
| USA | In-kind: | 635,000 |
| 38 MT of emergency supplies: medical, shelter, water storage, clothing, rescue equipment. | - | |
| TOTAL | 2,617,729 |
12. The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies launched an emergency appeal on Wednesday 12 November. The appeal seeks 4,655,000 USD to assist 150,000 beneficiaries for three months. The priorities of the Red Cross are:
- to provide food supplements and basic non-food commodities to 150,000 people (30,000 families) among those worst affected.
- to help the target families rebuild their homes and recover from the disaster through a house-hold resource generating project.
- to enhance the Vietnamese Red Cross disaster response capacity through restocking health posts and a community based disaster preparedness training component.
12. DHA is prepared to serve as a channel for cash contributions to be used during the immediate relief phase, in coordination/consultation with relevant organizations of the UN system. DHA provides donors with written confirmation and pertinent details concerning the utilizations of the funds contributed.
13. Donors wishing to channel their contributions through DHA should transfer funds to DHA account No. CO.590.160.1 at Swiss Bank Corporation, Case Postal 2770, CH-1211 Geneva 2, with reference: DHA - Vietnam - Typhoon Linda.
14. For coordination purposes, donors are requested to inform DHA Geneva, as indicated below, of relief missions/pledges/contributions and their corresponding values by item.
Telephone number: + 41-22-917 12 34
In case of emergency: Tel. + 41-22-917 20 10
Desk Officer: Ms. S. Metzner-Strack, DHA Relief Coordination Branch, direct
Tel. +41-22-917 21 44 or
Mr. F. Nielsen, direct Tel. + 41-22-917 17 47
Press to contact: Ms. M. Moulin-Acevedo, direct Tel. + 41-22-917 28 56
Telex: 414242 DHA CH
Fax: + 41-22-917 00 23
E-mail: info at dha.unicc.org
DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS