Rains triggered by Storm Noru flood trans-Vietnam routes

Heavy rains lasting for hours early Wednesday have caused water to rise quickly, inundating Dak Long Bridge on National Highway 14, which belongs to Ho Chi Minh Road, by around one meter.

The flooded section prevents vehicles to move between Kon Tum and Quang Nam provinces, said Y Thanh, chairwoman of Dak Glei District in Kon Tum.

A section of Ho Chi Minh Road that links Quang Nam and Kon Tum provinces is submerged, September 28, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Oanh

It also forced buses traveling from north to south and vice versa to stall.

Ho Chi Minh Road is one of four trans-Vietnam routes, which links Cao Bang Province in the north with Ca Mau, the southernmost province.

The rains also caused landslides in four areas along Lo Xo Pass on National Highway 14.

In Quang Tri Province, National Highway 15D, which also belongs to the Ho Chi Minh Road, Dakrong Bridge is flooded by 80 centimeters while La Hot 1 Bridge is submerged by 30 centimeters.

Several sections of the road in Thua Thien-Hue Province, home to former citadel Hue, were blocked by fallen tree branches.

In Quang Nam Province, a section of National Highway 1, which connects HCMC and Hanoi, is flooded by 1.5 meters in Phu Ninh District.

A section of National Highway 15D that belongs to Ho Chi Minh City Road is flooded on September 28, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Quang Ha

Storm Noru made landfall in Da Nang and its neighbor Quang Nam Province at 1 a.m. Wednesday, with maximum wind speed of 133 kph, making one the most powerful storms to hit Vietnam in the past two decades.

On Wednesday morning, it moved to Laos and weakened into a tropical depression.

So far, no human fatalities have been reported.