Dozens Die in Vietnam Floods

In many parts of northern and central Vietnam, entire villages and thousands of homes are submerged under several metres of water. At least sixty people have died and over ten are reported missing. Thousands are homeless and over 150,000 hectares of rice and crops have been damaged.

The floods and landslides triggered by last week's typhoon Lekima are the worst to hit Vietnam in almost fifty years. Heavy rains knocked out the dykes and flood-control systems in place to prevent such a disaster.

The worst-hit provinces are Thanh Hoa in the north and its southern neighbour Nghe An. Returning from a visit, Joe Lowry of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies told reporters what he had seen:

"It is a really appalling situation there. There've been people sleeping on roofs for three or four nights and people are calling out of their homes or standing on the roofs of their homes shouting and screaming."

Food and shelter

On Sunday, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung visited another flood-hit province Ninh Banh and ordered the authorities to supply food and shelter to the flood victims.

While the National Flood and Storm Department asked the Ministry of Construction to clear roads and build temporary bridges to the remote mountainous areas, cut off from the rest of the country.

For days, rescue workers have been trying to reach people by boat and helicopter, bringing water and dried noodles to the flood victims -- many of whom have no clean water, electricity or telephone lines.

Water-borne diseases

The health authorities have also sent medicine and doctors to the flooded areas, warning that there could be an outbreak of water-borne illnesses, such as diarrhoea and malaria. Although, so far, no cases have been reported.

In a strange twist of fate, the floods have also awakened memories of the Vietnam War. The water has apparently shifted so much soil in some areas that six unexploded bombs -- dropped by the US airforce in the 1960s and 70s -- have been unearthed. Three of them have now been diffused, according a local newspaper.

Typhoon hits China

Meanwhile, China has also been hit by floods. Typhoon Krosa, which killed 18 in Taiwan at the weekend, continued on to wreak havoc in the south of Shanghai. The economic hub itself was not hit -- much to the relief of the government in Beijing.

However, the provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian were pummelled by torrential rains and strong winds. Officials say over five million people have been affected. Almost 1.5 million had been evacuated from coastal areas as a precaution.

A mudslide caused a train to derail between the cities of Wenzhou and Jinhua in Zhejiang province but rescue workers said all the 600 people on board had escaped without harm.

Public transport, power supplies, air and shipping services have been affected by the floods. The state news agency estimated economic losses of over 600 million US dollars.