Matmo, the fifth storm this year, is moving west quickly and is forecast to reach the coastal areas of central Quang Ngai to Khanh Hoa provinces this evening, according to the latest report from the National Hydro-meteorological Forecast Centre.
Residents in Khanh Hoa brace for storm Matmo
The storm was located 260km east of the mainland of central provinces from Binh Dinh to Khanh Hoa at 7am on October 30. The strongest winds near the eye of the storm were 75-90km per hour.
It is expected to keep moving west at a speed of 15-20km per hour in the next 12 hours and make landfall in localities from Quang Ngai to Khanh Hoa at around 7pm on October 30.
It is forecast to weaken into a tropical depression and move toward the east of Cambodia.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Hoang Hiep has urged all localities and relevant ministries and agencies, particularly those in affected areas, to proactively prepare for the storm.
The storm would directly hit central and Central Highlands regions so localities needed to guide vessels to safe shelters and keep in touch with the mainland, regularly update them with the developments of the storm, while calling ships operating at sea back to land, he said at an urgent meeting held on October 30 morning.
He stressed the need to ban boats from going to sea to ensure safety for both people and their property, including tourist vessels.
Mountainous areas need to get prepared for possible flash floods and landslides and proactively evacuate residents from high risks areas, he said.
He also asked localities, Vietnam Electricity and the Directorate of Water Resources to pay special attention to the safety of dykes while keeping a close watch on reservoirs and hydropower plants.
Mai Van Khiem, Director of the National Hydro-meteorological Forecast Centre, said the storm with high tides would cause severe flooding and landslides.
As of 6am on October 30, safety guidelines have been provided to over 56,700 vessels with over 278,000 fishermen onboard.
Two fishing ships in distress offshore, including BĐ 98413 TS with six fishermen on board and BĐ 96389 TS with eight fishermen, were saved on October 30 morning and reached storm shelters.
Many localities have taken urgent measures to prepare for the storm.
Authorities of Khanh Hoa province which is forecast to be directly hit by the storm, has removed 15,000 residents living in high risk areas to safer places.
Phu Yen and Quang Ngai provinces allowed students to be off from schools on October 30 and 31 as part of measures to prepare for the storm.
VNA
