HANOI, Vietnam — The death toll from a typhoon in Vietnam rose to 233 on Friday as rescuers recovered more bodies from areas hit by landslides and flash floods, state media reported.
Floodwaters from the swollen Red River in the capital, Hanoi, were beginning to recede, but many neighbourhoods remained flooded and further north, experts predicted it would be several more days before any improvement was in sight.
Typhoon Yagi made landfall on Saturday, kicking off a week of heavy rains that have caused flash floods and landslides, particularly in Vietnam’s mountainous north.
In Vietnam, 103 people are still missing and more than 800 have been injured.
Most of the victims were in Lao Cai province, where a flash flood swept away the entire hamlet of Lang Nu on Tuesday. Eight villagers arrived safely Friday morning, saying they had left the village before the deluge, state-run VNExpress reported, but 48 other Lang Nu residents were found dead and 39 others remained missing.
Roads leading to Lang Nu have been severely damaged, making it impossible to bring in heavy equipment to assist in rescue efforts.
Some 500 people accompanied by sniffer dogs are on the scene and, during a visit to the scene on Thursday, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh promised that they would not let up in their search for those still missing.
“Their families are in agony,” Chinh said.
Coffins were stacked near the disaster site in preparation for the worst, and villager Tran Thi Ngan wept at a makeshift altar for the family members she had lost.
“It’s a disaster,” she told VTV news channel. “This is the fate we have to accept.”
In Cao Bang, another northern province bordering China, 21 bodies were found Friday, four days after a landslide sent a bus, a car and several motorcycles into a small river swollen by floodwaters. Ten others are still missing.
Experts say storms like Typhoon Yagi are becoming stronger because of climate change, as warmer ocean waters provide more energy to power them, leading to stronger winds and heavier rainfall.
The effects of the typhoon, the strongest to hit Vietnam in decades, are also being felt across the region, with flooding and landslides in northern Thailand, Laos and northeastern Myanmar.
In Thailand, 10 deaths have been reported from flooding and landslides, and Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra traveled to the northern part of the country on Friday to visit affected people in the border town of Mae Sai. Thailand’s Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation warned of a continuing risk of flash floods in several areas through Wednesday as more rain is expected to raise the level of the Mekong River further.
International aid has poured into Vietnam following the Yagi crash, with Australia already delivering humanitarian supplies as part of a $2 million aid package.
South Korea also pledged $2 million in humanitarian aid, and the U.S. Embassy said Friday it would provide $1 million in support through the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID.
“With heavy rains expected in the coming days, USAID disaster experts continue to monitor humanitarian needs in close coordination with local emergency authorities and partners on the ground,” the embassy said in a statement. “USAID humanitarian experts on the ground are participating in ongoing assessments to ensure that U.S. assistance reaches populations in need quickly.”
The typhoon and subsequent heavy rains damaged factories in northern provinces such as Haiphong, home to electric car company VinFast, parts suppliers Apple and other electronics makers, which could affect international supply chains, the Center for Strategic and International Studies said in a research note.
“Although 95% of businesses operating in Haiphong are expected to resume some activity by September 10, repair efforts will likely reduce production over the coming weeks and months,” CSIS said.
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Reporting from Bangkok. Associated Press writer Jintamas Saksornchai in Bangkok contributed to this report.
