According to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF), storm Wipha, the third to enter the East Sea this year, was situated at about 18.6 degrees latitude north and 113.4 degrees longitude east at 10 am on Wednesday morning, about 240 km northeast of Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago.
The strongest winds in the area near the centre of the storm are at 60-75km per hour. In the next 24 hours, it is forecasted to move in the west-northwest direction at a speed of 15-20km per hour.
By 10 am on August 2, its location will be about 21.3 degrees north latitude and 107.8 degrees east longitude, on the waters of the provinces from Quang Ninh to Hai Phong, with the strongest winds blowing at 75-90km a hour.
In the following 48 to 72 hours, the storm will move west at about 10km each hour, making landfall on the mainland from Quang Ninh to Nam Dinh provinces and weakening into a tropical depression.
Due to the effects of storm Wipha, the northern part of the East Sea (including Hoang Sa) is currently suffering from strong winds and rough seas, with potential sea waves of up to 3-5.5m in height.
Northern Vietnam is suffering from heavy rains, especially in the mountainous provinces of Lai Chau, Dien Bien, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Ha Giang and Tuyen Quang. On the rivers and streams in the northern mountains, there is a possibility of small floods, with the flood level amplitude ranging from 1-3 m. The mountainous areas have been warned of the risk of flash floods and landslides.
Actively responding to the storm and heavy rains, on July 30, the Standing Office of the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control sent an urgent telegraph to the relevant natural disaster prevention and control agencies in the coastal provinces and cities from Quang Ninh to Binh Dinh, as well as the northern localities, urging for the close monitoring of warning messages, forecasts and developments of the storm, while implementing measures to ensure the safety of local people and their properties in the affected areas.
