Typhoon Kai-Tak kills 27 in Vietnam – Typhoon Tembin hits Philippines, heads for Taiwan and China – Typhoon Bolaven lines up

Desdemona Despair

Strong wind and rain in northern Vietnam unleashed by Typhoon Kai-Tak have killed at least 17 people, damaged thousands of houses and submerged valuable crops, authorities said Monday.

The typhoon, which made landfall late Friday, brought winds of about 100 kilometres (62 miles) per hour, according to the national committee on flood and storm control.

Many of the dead are believed to have been killed in landslides or while attempting to cross rivers swollen by heavy rain.

In the capital Hanoi, about 200 trees were uprooted and a huge sinkhole appeared in the middle of a major road.

According to an official update, more than 12,000 houses were damaged and 30,500 hectares (75,000 acres) of cropland were flooded nationwide.

The storm was downgraded to a tropical depression on Saturday.

Before slamming into Vietnam, the typhoon killed four people in the Philippines and two in China, where the authorities relocated 530,000 people, according to state media there.

Typhoon kills 17 in Vietnam

21 August 2012 (Radio Australia) – At least 27 people have been killed during a typhoon which swept across northern provinces of Vietnam over the weekend, officials have said.

Typhoon Kai-Tak made landfall on Friday, bringing intense rain and strong winds.

Many of the dead are believed to have been killed in landslides or while attempting to cross rivers swollen by heavy rain

Officials say more than 12,000 houses have been damaged, and around 300 square kilometres of farmland have been inundated.

They expect there to be more heavy rain over the next few days.

Presenter: Richard Ewart

Speaker: Vu Xuan Viet, emergency response manager, Oxfam

VU: Well as you mentioned already that Typhoon Kai-Tak attacked Vietnam on Friday, and at the weekend there were very heavy downfalls and also there were some whirlwinds and flash floods and landslides across the northern country, the heavy rain and serious flooding in northern mountainous provinces. So the damage has been now conceded as quite high, that is the report by the central committee for flood and storm control. Yesterday the rains were reported to be less and the weather became less severe. So we expect that the recovery efforts are ongoing and people’s lives are being restored to normal.

EWART: In terms though of locating people who may be missing? What’s the scale of the task at the moment?

VU: Yes in 18 provinces affected by the tropical cyclones and also flash floods and landslides, Yen Bai suffered the most in terms of the housing problems for people. As you know, in the northern mountainous provinces like Yen Bai, a lot of minority peoples with their homes are quite temporary and vulnerable to whirlwinds. So the whirlwinds actually happened during the weekend, on the 18th of August, and nearly seven-thousand houses were unroofed or destroyed in many ways. So the government took a lot of active actions in terms of helping people to find temporary shelter, and also yesterday and today a lot of shelter recovery efforts are being made by the communities, people themselves, with the support from the local governments and mass organisations. […]

Typhoon Kai-Tak kills 27 in Vietnam

Typhoon Tembin on its track to hit Fujian at or near Xiamen

By Tony Hake
21 August 2012

The eighth typhoon of the year has developed extremely rapidly and while passing offshore brought landslides and flooding to the Philippines. Typhoon Tembin now appears intent on heading toward Taiwan while yet another typhoon, Bolaven, looks to do the same soon after.

The system that has become Typhoon Tembin grew from a tropical depression into a typhoon in less than 48 hours.

Named Igme in the Philippines, Typhoon Tembin passed north of the main island of Luzon. Heavy rains from the storm brought flooding and landslides that damaged eight highways. No deaths were reported from the storm although other storms are responsible for 170 deaths in the nation this month so far.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) says the storm is currently 290 miles southeast of Taipei and moving to the north at 7mph. It is packing powerful sustained winds of 115mph that are gusting to over 140mph.

Forecasters predict a turn to the northwest and eventually the west northwest which puts the storm on course for a direct strike of Taiwan. The eastern parts of the island nation are expected to begin feeling the effects of the storm by Wednesday afternoon with the entire island affected by Friday.

Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau has issued a sea warning for the ocean to the east of the storm. Warnings for areas on land are likely to come soon.

A second tropical system, Typhoon Bolaven, has also formed and together may deliver a one-two punch to Taiwan.

Bolaven is packing winds of 80mph gusting to nearly 100mph. The storm is approximately 470 northwest of Guam and moving to the northwest.

The JTWC cautions that the storm is expected to increase in intensity and pick up speed due to “favorable environmental conditions.”

The current forecast track for Bolaven puts it south of Okinawa and north of Taiwan on Sunday. However any shift to the north our south could put one of the islands at risk.