At least 127 people have now died and 54 others are missing in northern Vietnam, according to officials, as a super typhoon which hit on Saturday continues to bring heavy rainfall, landslides and flooding.
Thousands of people were seen stranded on rooftops in some northern provinces, while others posted desperate pleas for help on social media on Tuesday.
Typhoon Yagi – Vietnam’s most powerful storm in 30 years – has wreaked havoc across the north of the country, leaving 1.5 million people without power.
On Monday, dashcam footage showed the moment the Phong Chau bridge in Phu Tho province gave way, plunging several vehicles into the water below.
Although it has now weakened into a tropical depression, authorities have warned Yagi will create more disruption as it moves westwards.
Phan Thi Tuyet, 50, who lives close to the river, told the AFP news agency that she had never experienced such high water.
“I have lost everything, all gone,” she said, clutching her two dogs.
“I had to come to higher ground to save our lives. We could not bring any of the furniture with us. Everything is under water now.”
The storm – which brought winds of nearly 150km/h (92mph) – has damaged bridges, torn roofs off buildings, damaged factories and triggered widespread flooding and landslides, leaving 64 people still missing.
Authorities have now issued flood and landslide warnings for 401 communes across 18 northern provinces.
One-storey homes in parts of Thai Nguyen and Yen Bai provinces were almost completely submerged in the early hours of Tuesday, with residents waiting on the roofs for help.
As well as the dead and missing, flooding and landslides have also injured at least 752 people, officials at the ministry of agriculture said on Tuesday.
Before hitting Vietnam, Yagi left 24 people dead across southern China and the Philippines.
Meteorologists say that as the world warms typhoons can bring higher wind speeds and more intense rainfall, although the influence of climate change on individual storms is complicated.
Source: BBC
