The death toll from Typhoon Yagi in Vietnam has risen to at least 87 with many other individuals still missing and injured.
On Tuesday, state-run media in Vietnam reported the rise in the number of fatalities following the typhoon, while also noting that at least 70 people were still missing.
Yagi was the most powerful typhoon to strike Southeast Asia in decades, making landfall on Saturday with winds reaching 149 kph (92 mph). Although it weakened by Sunday, heavy rainfall continued to batter the region.
According to Vietnamese online news outlet VN Express, nine people died when Typhoon Yagi made landfall on Saturday, making it the strongest typhoon to hit Vietnam in decades. At least 50 others have died in the consequent floods and landslides.
Broadcasters on the Vietnamese state-run television network VTV said that landslides and floods were the main cause of death.
Water levels in several rivers, including the Red River running through Hanoi, surged to dangerous levels, prompting authorities to evacuate nearby residents. According to state media, officials reported that Hanoi, Vietnam’s second-largest city with a population of 8.5 million, faced its worst flooding since 2008.
This aerial picture shows flood waters surrounding homes in Thai Nguyen province on September 10, 2024, in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi hitting northern Vietnam. On September 10, 2024, state-run media in Vietnam reported that the death toll following the typhoon increased to 87.
HUU HAO/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images
Heavy rain and landslides have claimed 19 lives in Lao Cai, a northwestern province bordering China. Video footage obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday captured the moment soil cascaded down a hill, burying houses and a road while residents scrambled to escape. Local authorities reported that three people were rescued after a steel bridge collapsed into the Red River the previous day, while 13 others are still missing.
In Yen Bai, a mountainous province, thousands were evacuated as floodwaters continued to rise, local media reported. At least 32 people have been confirmed dead with seven still missing. Authorities noted that more than 10,000 homes in the province’s main city were completely submerged by the floods.
The Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation reported that hundreds of people have been displaced and cut off in the rocky provinces of Ha Giang and Dien Bien. Landslides have left roads in Ha Giang blocked by debris, while schools near rivers have been closed due to the ongoing flood threat, the foundation said in a statement.
Cao Bang is among the hardest-hit provinces in Vietnam, with 19 confirmed dead and 36 still missing following landslides in the mountainous region. On Monday, a bridge collapsed and a bus carrying around 20 passengers was swept into a flooded stream, further adding to the devastation.
One survivor, Pham Truong Son, shared his experience of driving on the bridge on his motorcycle when he heard a loud noise and it collapsed. He told VN Express how he fell into the river and narrowly survived by clinging to a banana tree.
“I felt like I was drowned to the bottom of the river,” Son told the outlet.
This article includes reporting from the Associated Press.
