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From its formation to its landfall, Typhoon No. 3 Yagi showed abnormalities. This was proven by the terrible destruction along its path.
The appearance and continuous change of intensity
Typhoon No. 3 Yagi is a very special storm, it formed east of the Philippines but strengthened into a super typhoon in the East Sea and is the strongest typhoon in the East Sea in the past 30 years.
Mr. Mai Van Khiem – Director of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting said that the strongest wind near the storm’s eye is level 16, gusting over level 17; when making landfall in Quang Ninh – Hai Phong, the strongest wind is level 13-14, gusting to level 16-17.
Hoang Quoc Viet Street (Bai Chay, Quang Ninh Province) is cluttered. This is where many luxury restaurants and hotels along the coast are concentrated. Photo: Thach Thao.
“Storm No. 3 and its circulation have a wide range of influence from the Northern region to Thanh Hoa province, up to 26 provinces and cities, and caused heavy rain in the Northern region,” said the Director of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.
According to Mr. Mai Van Khiem, no storm has entered the East Sea and strengthened into a super typhoon.
Storm No. 3 also strengthened very quickly, from the time it entered the East Sea (September 2) at level 8, to more than 2 days later, the storm strengthened to level 8, reaching super typhoon level on September 5. This is relatively rare for storms in the East Sea.
Race to the top
According to the Department of Dyke Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), natural disaster prevention and control work has always received early and drastic direction from the Government and Prime Minister, and the synchronous participation of the entire political system and community.
The Prime Minister paid special attention and consecutively issued three urgent dispatches to direct ministries, branches and localities to urgently and focusedly deploy measures to respond to the storm.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh inspected the damage and directed the implementation of urgent measures to overcome the consequences of storm No. 3 in Quang Ninh. Photo: Thach Thao
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha continuously held online meetings with ministries, branches and 28 northern provinces and cities, went to Ha Tinh province and directly inspected and directed 4 coastal provinces from Quang Ninh to Thai Binh.
Faced with the complicated developments of the storm, on September 7, the Prime Minister decided to establish a Frontline Steering Committee in Hai Phong and assigned Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha to directly command and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development to continue directing the response to the storm in Quang Ninh.
On September 8, the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Ministers held online and in-person meetings with Ministers, Secretaries, and Chairmen of People’s Committees of Northern provinces and cities to Thanh Hoa to direct urgent work to overcome the consequences of storm No. 3.
To cope with Typhoon Yagi, the authorities have mobilized 457,469 people to respond to Super Typhoon Yagi. Among them are army, militia, and reserve forces. At the same time, the army has also mobilized 10,124 vehicles (403 special vehicles, 4,773 cars, 4,942 boats, and 6 planes) ready to respond to Super Typhoon No. 3.
The strongest storm in 30 years in the northern provinces
As of 5:30 p.m. on September 8, storm No. 3 has left 22 people dead and missing, 229 people injured, and 25 boats of all kinds sunk at their anchorage in Quang Ninh.
Dozens of boats anchored along the coast of Ha Long (Quang Ninh) were sunk by waves. Photo: Thach Thao
The storm caused widespread power and communication outages in the provinces and cities of Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Thai Binh, Hai Duong, and Hanoi.
In addition, many shops, offices, and schools had their roofs blown off or damaged; many advertising signs and telecommunication poles were broken; urban trees were uprooted and broken along the roads in the provinces and cities of Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Hai Duong, and Hanoi.
In terms of agriculture, Typhoon Yagi also flooded and damaged 109,382 hectares of rice; 17,921 hectares of crops were flooded and 6,902 hectares of fruit trees were damaged. At the same time, over 1,100 aquaculture cages were damaged and swept away (mainly in Quang Ninh).
Unprecedented scene on the streets of the capital
On the evening of September 7, the eye of typhoon Yagi swept through the capital, causing heavy rain and thunderstorms for 7 hours. The storm’s wind gusted at level 10, the strongest in 30 years, causing trees to fall all over Hanoi.
After a night of Typhoon Yagi, Hanoi streets were devastated with many trees broken and hundreds of houses had their roofs blown off. The strong storm and fallen trees caused power outages in many residential areas both in and outside Hanoi.
“Having lived in Hanoi for nearly 30 years, this is the first time I have witnessed such a serious storm,” said Hoang Anh Minh, a resident of Tay Ho.
Authorities clean up fallen trees on Hanoi streets after the storm. Photo: Dinh Hieu
At an online meeting with the Prime Minister on the morning of September 8, Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Tran Sy Thanh said that about 17,000 trees had fallen in the area. Among them, a series of ancient trees had fallen and were scattered, cutting off roads in the inner city.
Typhoon Yagi swept through the capital, killing 3 people and injuring 8 others. Hanoi recorded 274 houses and other structures with corrugated iron roofs blown off, 4 houses with corrugated iron roofs collapsed, and many electric poles fell. In addition, nearly 100 cars and motorbikes were damaged.
Inspecting the work to overcome the consequences of storm Yagi, Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Bui Thi Minh Hoai reminded relevant units to absolutely maintain safety during the process of overcoming the consequences caused by the storm. Maintain forces and means to handle arising problems, especially drainage, ensuring the safety of dykes and dams.
The head of the Hanoi Party Committee requested that districts, towns, and departments not be complacent even after the storm has passed. Focus on overcoming the consequences and supporting areas and households that suffered heavy damage, especially families and establishments whose houses and construction works collapsed.