Thousands stranded as record floods submerge Vietnam streets

HANOI, Vietnam, October 10 ------ Record floods submerged streets and inundated homes in Vietnam leaving tens of thousands of people stranded, with at least eight killed this week.

Floodwaters reached the tops of cars and rooftops in areas of Thai Nguyen city, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Hanoi, with many left stuck at home and others forced to flee. The environment ministry said eight people were killed in flash floods and landslides in Vietnam's mountainous north since Monday, and five others were missing. "I have never witnessed such a terrible flood since I was born 60 years ago," Nguyen Van Nguyen told AFP from his three-story house in Thai Nguyen province. "There has never been flooding here in my street but now my ground floor is all submerged."

The military said it had mobilized 30,000 personnel and thousands of boats to join rescue and relief efforts. It used three helicopters to drop more than four tons of water, instant noodles, dry cake, milk, and lifejackets to people in flooded parts of Lang Son province.

From late Tuesday to Wednesday, the country recorded the highest flood levels on three rivers in the north in nearly 40 years, state media reported. The high-water mark of Trung river in Lang Son, bordering China, was forecast to peak at nearly two meters (6.5 feet) above the record, Vietnam state television said. The Bang and Thuong rivers also surpassed levels not seen since 1986. By Wednesday morning, the weather bureau said the Cau river, running across Thai Nguyen city, was more than a meter higher than the previous record level -- when Typhoon Yagi devastated the country in September last year.

Source: gmanetwork.com