Storm Noru: ‘Terrifying winds’ at Quang Ngai’s Ly Son Island

The National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting says Ly Son Island is experiencing increased storm intensity.

Currently, the eye of the storm is about 130 km from Da Nang, about 115 km from Quang Nam and about 108 km from Quang Ngai to the east with a maximum wind speed of 149 kph.

Over the next 3 hours, the storm will proceed west at 20 kph.

So around 1-3 a.m. Wednesday morning, the eye of the storm can hit the mainland.

Rainfall from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on September 27 was recorded at over 200 mm in areas like Bach Ma (Thua Thien Hue), more than 240 mm in Suoi Da (Da Nang) and 220 mm in Lao Cham (Quang Nam).

The traffic police department said Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh has requested for traffic on both ends of routes leading through central Vietnam and the Central Highlands to be suspended starting 10 p.m.

Authorities have banned traffic routes like the National Highway 1A, National Highway 14, the Ho Chi Minh Road, the Da Nang-Quang Ngai Highway, along with other routes from Quang Binh to Khanh Hoa and from the Central Highlands to central Vietnam localities.

Traffic police in Da Nang erected barriers to restrict traffic, Sept. 27, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Xuan Hoa

Pham Thi Huong, chairwoman of the Ly Sin District People’s Committee in Quang Ngai, said storm Noru has made landfall in the area, bringing heavy rains and strong winds. All personnel have been dispatched to respond to the storm and the people have been evacuated. No casualty was reported.

 

 

Storm Noru: ‘Terrifying winds’ at Quang Ngai’s Ly Son Island

Bão vô đảo Lý Sơn

It was raining heavily and strong winds were blowing at the Thuan An estuary in Hue’s Hai Duong Commune. The rising waters created big waves that overflowed the breakwater.

The road in Thai Duong Ha Nam Village was flooded with more than 40 cm of water, leaving 40 households in the Huong Giang hamlet isolated. The local police force has been assigned to help the hamlet’s residents.

According to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, the storm is currently about 140km from Da Nang, about 127km from Quang Nam and about 117km east of Quang Ngai, with a maximum wind speed of 166 kph.

In the next 3 hours, the storm will move westwards at 20 kph.

Due to the influence of the storm, Hue, Quy Nhon (Binh Dinh), Tuy Hoa (Phu Yen) and Da Nang have experienced strong winds and heavy rains. Rainfall from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday was recorded at over 180 mm in Bach Ma (Thua Thien Hue), 197 mm in Tho Quang (Da Nang), 200 mm in Cu Lao Cham (Quang Nam), more than 200 mm in Nui Thanh (Quang Nam) and nearly 190 mm in Tra Phu (Quang Ngai).

Noru triggers memories of historic Cecil storm, 40 years ago

Tran Sang, 60, of Hai Duong Commune in Hue Town, holds his 3-month-old grandson in his arms while watching the evening news to see the path that storm Noru is taking.

“This is one of the strongest storms in the past 20 years, so my family is very worried. Over the decades that I have lived in a coastal commune, the Cecil storm in 1985 was the most intense and deadly. The wind was really strong and the water rose very quickly. The storm also happened around this time. Many people died and were swept away into the sea” Sang recalled.

He said his family had been hoarding food and oil to prepare for the storm.

To prevent accidents, his colleagues and Hoang Dinh Tan, 68, who was part of the construction crew for a bridge over the Thuan An sea in Hai Duong province, have gathered their belongings have moved to Thai Duong Primary School for shelter.

There is only light rain and little wind in Quang Nam’s Hoi An Town, where the eye of storm Noru is expected to go through. People retreat back to their homes, shops are closed and certain streets, like Bach Dang and Tran Hung Dao, experience blackouts.

A tourism vessel is docked on the Hoai River, near the Hoi An market, Sept. 27, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh

On Tuesday afternoon, Nguyen Quang Vinh’s family, from Cam An Ward, took refuge at a restaurant in Hoi An away from the storm. Vinh said he’s been used to storms every year, but never neglected to be careful.

Hoi An’s Hai Ba Trung Street is inundated due to impacts of storm Noru, Sept. 27, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Thanh

Over the past few years, hotels and other accommodations in Hoi An have all announced that they would provide storm shelters. Vinh’s family of six only brought some clothes and personal belongings with them to the shelter. Vinh said one would only need to store food if there are floods that last for days, and only a shelter is needed to seek safety from a storm.

At 8 p.m., the storm was 180 km away from the shores of Da Nang-Quang Ngai to the east, with a maxium wind speed of 166 kph, according to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.

On Tuesday night, the storm would continue to ove west at 20-25 kph, and would make landfall on localities in central Vietnam. By 7 a.m. Wednesday, the storm’s eye would be above the regions from Thua Thien-Hue to Quang Ngai, with a maximum wind speed at 117 kph.

The storm would retain its speed and direction on Wednesday, moving towards Laos and weakening into a tropical depression. By 7 p.m. Wednesday, the storm would be located over southern Laos, with a maximum wind speed at 61 kph.

 

 

Storm Noru: ‘Terrifying winds’ at Quang Ngai’s Ly Son Island

Đường phố Đà Nẵng vắng vẻ trước giờ bão đổ bộ

Residents of Binh Dong Commune in the province’s Binh Son District have taken refuge in the storm shelter of the Hoa Phat Steel Factory. This area can accommodate 6,000 people.

Quang Ngai people at an evacuation shelter. Photo by VnExpress/Pham Linh

Quang Ngai has relocated and evacuated 10,000 people so far, of which about 5,000 people are from coastal districts. Each coastal commune in the province has around two storm shelters.

A boy reaches a storm shelter with his family in Quang Ngai Province. Photo by VnExpress/Pham Linh

The Steering Committee for storm threatened localties has reported that provinces from Quang Tri to Binh Dinh have evacuated more than 81,000 households with 253,000 people (71%). Besides them, nearly 4,800 tourists in provinces and cities from Thua Thien Hue to Binh Dinh have been informed about the storm and are staying at tourist facilities to ensure their safety.

Tourists on Ly Son and Cu Lao Cham islands have moved to the mainland to shelter from the approaching storm.

A Hoa Vang District policeman helps an old lady to evacuate. Photo by VnExpress/Nguyen Dong