New flooding strikes Vietnam's central region and Central Highlands
Floods triggered by torrential rains with localized downpours reaching more than 80mm continue to rage in the south central and Central Highlands regions of Vietnam, forcing urgent evacuations.
THE HANOI TIMES — Prolonged overnight downpours and reservoir discharges have unleashed a new wave of floods and landslides across Vietnam's central region and Central Highlands, submerging thousands of houses and crippling major transport routes.
In the Central Highland province of Lam Dong, rising upstream floodwaters forced the some reservoirs to increase discharge to ensure dam safety during December 4 night, submerging communes and wards.
National Highway 1A and hundreds of houses in the Central Highland province of Lam Dong is inundated. Photo: Baolamdong.vn
Police cordoned off a section of National Highway 1A in the province after extensive flooding rendered the road impassable.
Preliminary reports from local authorities indicated that around 3,200 houses had been inundated as of December 5, with floodwaters continuing to rise. Over 1,000 households, severely affected by deep flooding, were urgently evacuated to safe places.
Local authorities prioritize protecting locals’ lives, setting up temporary shelters and ensuring supplies of food, clean water, medicine and other essentials.
Many mountain passes in Lam Dong Province suffered fresh landslides. A major landslide on the Prenn Pass to the tourism city of Da Lat cut off traffic entirely, prompting a ban of all vehicles in the area.
Tons of soil, rocks and fallen trees blocked the roadway on Prenn Pass. Photo: Baolamdong.vn
In the central coast province of Khanh Hoa, prolonged overnight rainfall caused widespread localized flooding. Streets in northern Nha Trang and western Nha Trang were submerged 30cm to 50cm, disrupting traffic and daily activities.
Nguyen Van Binh, resident from Vinh Phuong Commune, told Khanh Hoa Newspaper that water began rising on December 4 night, forcing his family to stay awake all night to move furniture.
In response, provincial authorities ordered reservoir operators to reduce discharge rates and regulate flows to minimize downstream flooding. Several schools were closed on December 5 to ensure student safety.
Widespread flooding disrupts transportation in the central coast province of Khanh Hoa. Photo: Baokhanhhoa.vn
The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment reported that heavy rains from Hue City to Lam Dong Province had caused flooding on rivers in Lam Dong, Khanh Hoa and Quang Ngai. One person was confirmed dead in Lam Dong.
According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, rainfall over the next two days is expected to reach 40mm to 80 mm, with localized totals above 120mm.
ADB rolls out emergency grant for flood relief in Vietnam
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide immediate grant support worth US$2 million to Vietnam, ADB President Masato Kanda announced on December 4.
Kanda underscored ADB’s commitment to supporting immediate relief efforts as well as the early stages of community recovery in the affected regions.
Relief goods delivered to people affected by natural disasters in the central region. Photo: Kinh te & Do thi Newspaper
"We will work quickly and cooperatively with governments to bring shelter, comfort and hope to those affected by these terrible disasters," said Kanda.
The assistance will be financed through the Asia Pacific Disaster Response Fund, which offers rapid financial support to developing member countries for urgent, life-saving needs in the aftermath of major natural hazard events.
According to ADB, the recent floods have resulted in significant loss of life and widespread damage to homes, livelihoods and critical infrastructure across parts of South and Southeast Asia.
In Vietnam, severe natural disasters have left 409 people dead or missing and total economic losses of over VND85 trillion ($4 billion) so far this year.
