All-out mobilization to rescue flood-stricken communities in central Vietnam

More than 64,500 military personnel and thousands of vehicles have been sent to inundated areas, while four helicopters stationed in Khanh Hoa’s Cam Ranh International Airport and Phu Cat Airport in Gia Lai Province stand ready to deliver food and supplies or conduct emergency evacuations.

PM orders maximum response

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Thursday evening issued an urgent directive ordering ministries and the provinces of Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Khanh Hoa, and Lam Dong to fully mobilize in response to severe, widespread flooding.

In recent days, torrential rains have drenched the region.

Water levels on the rivers from Quang Tri to Khanh Hoa have exceeded alarm levels 2 and 3, and in some areas surpassed historic peaks, particularly in Dak Lak and Khanh Hoa.

The combination of extreme rainfall, exceptional flooding, and high tides has created devastating conditions.

The prime minister has signed five urgent directives in total, while Deputy Prime Minister Ho Quoc Dung has been on the ground inspecting affected areas and coordinating emergency measures.

While local authorities, military, and police units have acted swiftly and decisively, the scale of the disaster remains immense.

Risks of flash floods and landslides continue to rise.

Reaching every isolated household

PM Chinh instructed provincial leaders and military forces to deploy every available resource by land, water, and air to reach isolated communities and prevent further loss of life.

He emphasized that no resident should remain stranded without timely rescue, whether trapped inside homes or on rooftops.

Local authorities must urgently deliver food, water, and essential supplies to affected residents.

Young people and women should be mobilized to cook and distribute meals.

Evacuation centers will be established wherever necessary, including in public buildings, police, and military facilities.

Officials are also directed to visit affected families, offer support, and implement relief policies immediately, prioritizing households that have lost loved ones or homes.

Intensifying rescue efforts

The Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security were assigned to order their units to maintain full readiness and mobilize maximum personnel and resources for search and rescue operations.

On Thursday, soldiers erected two large field tents on an overpass at Ngoc Hoi Intersection in Tay Nha Trang Ward, Khanh Hoa Province, providing a temporary refuge and supply point for those rescued from severely flooded neighborhoods.

Each tent covers some 100 square meters.

Ambulances and rescue teams remain on standby.

The prime minister also instructed the Ministry of Construction and the Ministry of Public Security to block dangerous roads, monitor landslide-prone slopes, and strictly restrict travel in affected zones.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and the Ministry of Industry and Trade were tasked with working closely to continue reviewing and guiding the safe and appropriate operation of irrigation and hydropower reservoirs, prioritizing reduced downstream water releases to minimize damage to residents.

The Ministry of Education and Training must ensure student safety above all else.

Schools will only reopen when conditions are fully secure; otherwise, students are to remain home and make up lessons later.

The Ministry of Finance was ordered to release rice stocks and essential materials.

Thousands of cries for help echo through night amid deadly floods

Throughout the nights of Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, desperate pleas for help from residents across the south-central region from Gia Lai, Dak Lak, and Khanh Hoa spread across social media, overwhelming emergency hotlines.

The cries for rescue rising from the swirling, dark floodwaters were heart-wrenching.

They spurred rescue teams into action and echoed in the ears of local residents and those far from home who stayed awake through sleepless nights, anxiously following developments.

The floodwaters surged with terrifying speed, rising like a waterfall within moments and giving tens of thousands of families no time to react.

Water climbed hour by hour, submerging furniture, swallowing beds and cupboards, reaching windows, doorframes, and eventually rooftops.

Thousands of people tore through corrugated metal and roof tiles to climb onto the tops of their homes, calling for help as floodwaters surrounded them on all sides.

Tich, a 68-year-old resident of Tuy Phuoc Commune in Gia Lai Province, shared that she had never in her life witnessed a flood so massive or rising so quickly.

At 2:00 am on Thursday, she cried out for help as water rushed into her home.

The family fled in panic, unsure where to go, she recounted.

Fortunately, a rescue boat arrived in time to pull all four members of her household from the raging flood.

“I have never seen a flood like this. We just endured a powerful storm, and now this massive flood – it’s devastating," she bemoaned.

“All my chickens and ducks are gone. We managed to save nothing but our lives."

Heavy rain is forecast to continue hitting many central localities from Da Nang City to Khanh Hoa Province on Friday, with precipitation reaching 50-120 mm, according to the national weather center.

Rainfall is expected to drop to 30-60 mm on Saturday and Sunday, though some pockets may still experience intense showers.