Typhoon Noru hits Vietnam

(Danang) Typhoon noru made landfall along Vietnam’s central coast on Wednesday morning, the national meteorological institute said, bringing strong winds and heavy rain as hundreds of thousands of people took shelter in shelters.

“The position of the center of the typhoon at 4 a.m. (2100 GMT Tuesday) on September 28 is between Danang and Quang Nam,” the country’s National Hydrometeorological Forecasting Center said, adding that wind speeds were between 103 and 117 km/h.

In Danang, Vietnam’s third largest city, buildings were damaged by strong winds, which toppled trees and tore roofs, according to AFP journalists on the spot.

More than 200,000 people have taken refuge in shelters in Vietnam, as meteorologists have identified noru as one of the largest storms to hit the Southeast Asian country.

noruthen a super typhoon, hit the Philippines this week, with the death toll of six, including five rescuers, uprooting trees, causing flooding and power cuts.

In Vietnam, wind strength was weaker than initially expected, but meteorologists forecast heavy rains to continue throughout the day and warned of possible landslides and severe flooding.

Nearly half of Vietnam’s airports have been closed, as have schools and offices in several central provinces, including Danang.

” I wanted to leave. My house is not very solid. I’m afraid her roof will be blown away when the typhoon hits,” Huynh Mua told AFP, clutching a plastic bag full of clothes, a blanket and several packets of instant noodles.

Authorities announced on Tuesday evening that they had evacuated nearly 260,000 people from their homes, including in the tourist town of Hoi An.

Three hundred houses in the coastal province of Quang Tri had their roofs ripped off on Tuesday evening as winds began to pick up.

In the nearby city of Hue, trees were destroyed.

In Danang, all shops and hotels were closed, while residents were banned from going out on the streets.

Strong mobilization

The Defense Ministry has mobilized about 40,000 troops and 200,000 security personnel, equipped with armored vehicles and boats in preparation for rescue and relief operations, state media said.

Authorities announced on Tuesday evening that they had evacuated nearly 260,000 people from their homes, including in the tourist town of Hoi An, where residents were taken to a primary school.

The central section of the highway linking Hanoi in the north with the Ho Chi Minh City metropolitan area in the south was also closed.

In the Phillippines, noruthe most powerful typhoon recorded this year in this country, caused the death of six people, including five rescue workers.

The sixth victim, an elderly man, died in a landslide in the municipality of Burdeos, on the Polillo Islands in Quezon province, where the typhoon made landfall, said Garner Jimenez of the local office of the civil defense.