The minister asked the authorities concerned to instruct vessels to navigate away from the danger zone and evacuate people from coastal aquaculture farms.
He called for measures to ensure the safety of 1,640 tourists, including 4 foreign nationals, stranded on Co To Island, which is on the trail of tropical storm Mun.
According to the national weather service, tropical storm Mun has moved past China’s Hainan Island and entered the Gulf of Tonkin.
As of 1pm on July 3, the storm was located at about 130 kilometres from Bach Long Vi Island and 240 kilometres from the coast of the provinces from Quang Ninh to Nam Dinh, with winds of 62-74 km/h and gusts of 103-117 km/h.
It is projected to continue moving in the west-northwest direction over the next 12 hours at speeds of 10-15 km/h and it could still strengthen further.
Heavy rains of 50-100mm have come down in the provinces from Thanh Hoa to Thua Thien-Hue as a result of the storm.
Speaking at a meeting of the national disaster management agency, Minister Cuong underlined the importance of ensuring the safety for the dyke system and reservoirs in the areas affected by storm Mun.
According to an agency responsible for dyke management, there are 43 vulnerable locations at dykes from Quang Ninh to Ha Tinh provinces.
In the localities where the impact of the storm is expected to be the strongest, the evacuation of people from coastal aquafarms will be completed on June 3 before the storm makes landfall.
A warning of flash floods and landslides for mountainous provinces has also been issued.
