A tropical depression developing in the South China Sea, which Vietnam calls the East Sea, may grow into a storm and move toward Vietnam in the first days of September, according to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF).
The forecast roadmap of the tropical depression. Source: NCHMF
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The center noted that at 4:00 am on September 2, the location of the tropical depression was at about 19 degrees of north latitude, 112.1 degrees of east longitude, about 220km to the north of the Parcels Islands.
It is forecast that in the next 24 hours, the tropical depression will move in the southwest direction with about 20km per hour. Until 7:00 pm on September 2, the eye of the storm will be about 200km to the east of the provinces of Quang Tri and Quang Ngai with the strongest wind of scale 8 (75km per hour according to Vietnam's scale).
The possible storm will be the fifth to hit Vietnam this year, after typhoon Podul rolled up the country with numerous damages.
Storm Podul caused six deaths nationwide
Although Podul has weakened into a tropical depression on Friday morning after making landfall in the central provinces of Ha Tinh and Quang Binh.
A tree fell on a car at Hoang Hoa Tham street in Hanoi during the storm. Photo: Manh Khanh
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The provinces of Quang Binh and Hoa Binh reported one death each due to floods as of Sunday.
Another in Hoa Binh and two people in northern Thai Nguyen province were struck dead by lightning. A young man in Hanoi died as heavy rain and strong winds triggered by storm Podul felled several trees in the capital on Thursday evening.
Authorities in the northern province of Lao Cai said on Sunday morning that the bodies of a couple, who were swept away by the flashflood on Friday while working at a hydropower plant site, have yet to be found.
17 crew members of three fishing vessels from central Binh Dinh Province are believed to be drifting in the seas off the central Ha Tinh province and Da Nang city and have lost contact with the mainland since Thursday.
Besides, the natural disaster also destroyed and damaged 1,232 houses, submerged 405 others, and harmed 6,769 ha of rice and 403 ha of vegetables. A total of 6,370 domesticated animals were dead or swept away, while damage was inflicted on 2,941 ha of aquatic farming.
Vietnam is usually hit by up to 10 tropical storms during the monsoon season between July and October. Other four are expected this year.
