Typhoon Bualoi made a devastating impact on Vietnam’s central coastline this Monday, leaving a trail of destruction that has resulted in at least 12 confirmed deaths and 21 individuals reported missing, state media confirms. The catastrophic storm’s journey began over the weekend, where it first battered the Philippines, claiming at least 10 lives before moving on to Vietnam.
The typhoon officially made landfall late Sunday evening, bringing sustained winds of 73 to 83 miles per hour, according to national weather forecasts. In response, Vietnamese authorities swiftly escalated relief operations on Monday, with rescue teams facing immense challenges in reaching remote communities cut off by severe landslides and rapidly advancing flash floods. As Bualoi tracked westward towards Laos, persistent rainfall threatened to overflow hydropower reservoirs, posing an ongoing risk of further destruction.
EVN, Vietnam’s national power company, has announced extensive operations are in progress to restore electricity to nearly two million households across the affected central regions.
Local weather forecaster Huy Nguyen described Bualoi as one of the most intense typhoons to strike these regions in the past two decades. He explained that its prolonged presence inland, lasting between six and eleven hours after landfall, significantly contributed to the extensive and widespread damage observed.
Amidst the chaos, rescue teams successfully extracted 13 individuals who had become stranded by rapidly rising floodwaters at a riverside farm in Thanh Hoa Province on Monday afternoon, local media reported.
An interactive feature titled ‘Tracking Typhoon Bualoi’ provides a visual guide to the storm’s projected path and estimated wind arrival times, offering crucial information for understanding its trajectory.
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Hawaii reported that Typhoon Bualoi sustained maximum winds of approximately 90 miles per hour as it traversed a broad area of central Vietnam. This region had barely begun to recover from the widespread destruction inflicted by Typhoon Kajiki just a month prior, compounding the disaster.
The unfortunate succession of these powerful storms has left residents with virtually no respite or time for meaningful recovery efforts.
Tran Thi Ha, a 40-year-old resident of Ha Tinh Province, shared her distress: ‘The previous typhoon destroyed my home, blowing away the entire roof. I had just finished repairing my house with loans. Now, this new typhoon has caused damage once more.’
Bualoi’s destructive force extended widely across the region. Ninh Binh Province, located about 124 miles from the typhoon’s center, experienced intense thunderstorms that led to the collapse of homes and the deaths of nine people. In central Ha Tinh Province, directly in the storm’s path, extensive power outages were reported, affecting massive areas.
Tran Huu Khanh, Deputy Director of the Ha Tinh Department of Agriculture and Environment, stated, ‘We anticipate continued rainfall. We are actively mobilizing all available resources to address the heightened risks of flash floods and landslides that may arise.’
In a crucial preparatory move, Vietnamese authorities had successfully evacuated tens of thousands of residents over the weekend, prior to Bualoi’s anticipated arrival, to mitigate potential casualties.
While the typhoon center predicted Bualoi would weaken and dissipate within the next 24 hours, Dr. Huy cautioned that the danger was far from over. ‘The typhoon continues to deliver heavy rainfall across Laos and the border region with Vietnam,’ he warned, emphasizing that ‘the full impact and inherent danger of this typhoon are not yet behind us.’