Super Typhoon Yagi, the most powerful storm in Asia this year, has claimed at least four lives after making landfall in northern Vietnam.
The storm struck Hai Phong and Quang Ninh provinces on Saturday morning with winds reaching up to 203 km/h (126 mph), according to the Indo-Pacific Tropical Cyclone Warning Center. The intense winds and debris have damaged buildings and vehicles, causing power outages in Hanoi. State media reported that three people died in Quang Ninh and another in Hai Duong, near Hanoi, with approximately 78 others injured in the region.
In Hai Phong, AFP reported seeing metal roof sheets and commercial sign boards being blown across the city. The storm had previously caused significant damage on the island of Hainan in China, a popular tourist destination known as China’s Hawaii. At least three people have died and nearly 100 have been injured in China due to Yagi.
Hai Phong, a coastal city with a population of two million, has been severely impacted. Power outages have affected parts of the city, which hosts numerous multinational factories, and four airports in the north have suspended operations for most of the day. Nearly 50,000 people have been evacuated from coastal towns in Vietnam, and authorities have advised residents to stay indoors. Schools in 12 northern provinces, including Hanoi, have been closed.
As of 20:00 local time (14:00 BST) on Saturday, Vietnam’s state meteorology agency reported that the storm was still producing winds of up to 102 km/h (63 mph) as it moved inland. Satellite imagery indicated that the storm’s eye was southwest of Hanoi and is expected to move into northernmost Laos by Sunday evening.
Hai Phong and Quang Ninh have recorded over 20 cm of rainfall since Saturday began. Images from Hanoi show motorcyclists taking shelter under bridges to escape the heavy rain. The storm also caused a two-storey house in the capital to collapse; however, officials noted it was in the process of being demolished and had not been occupied.
Hanoi resident Dang Van Phuong told Reuters, “I’ve never seen a storm like this. You can’t drive in these winds.”
On Friday, China had evacuated around 400,000 people from Hainan island in anticipation of Yagi’s arrival. Transportation and schools were suspended, and local media reported widespread power outages affecting about 830,000 households. Valuable crops have also been destroyed. Social media from China showed windows being ripped out from high-rise buildings on Hainan.
A super typhoon is equivalent to a Category 5 hurricane. Yagi is the second strongest typhoon of the year and has intensified significantly since striking northern Philippines earlier in the week, where floods and landslides caused by the storm resulted in at least 13 deaths and forced thousands to evacuate.
Scientists attribute the increasing strength and frequency of typhoons and hurricanes to climate change, with warmer ocean waters fueling more intense storms and a warmer atmosphere holding more moisture, leading to heavier rainfall.
