Extreme rainfall expected to become commonplace in Vietnam this year

This warning was issued by Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Nguyen Hoang Hiep in a recent interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, where he emphasized the urgent need for preparedness as the country enters its rainy season.

Hiep cited forecasts from the national weather center as saying that while the overall scale of natural disasters this year may not be catastrophic, abnormal weather patterns are expected to be frequent.

“We’ve already seen early signs. At the start of the season, Ho Chi Minh City reported rainfall of 200mm in just nearly three hours,” he noted.

“Heavy rains have lashed Tuyen Quang and Bac Kan in northern Vietnam."

He stressed that these extreme downpours with precipitation of 100mm in a single hour are likely to become widespread, posing serious challenges to Vietnam’s urban infrastructure.

Most urban drainage systems, including those in major cities like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang, were not designed to handle such volumes of water in such a short time.

He urged local authorities to implement drainage improvements and expedite solutions to prevent flooding.

As for storms, this year is expected to see 12 or 13 storms or tropical depressions forming over the East Vietnam Sea, with about five or six projected to make landfall.

Mountainous areas face higher risk of landslides

“Heavy rains could trigger landslides and flash floods in mountainous areas,” Hiep warned.

Local authorities and residents must act swiftly on forecasts and evacuation warnings.

“When a downpour is forecast, it is urgent to evacuate residents to safe places to protect lives,” he stressed.

In terms of long-term planning, he emphasized the importance of strict land-use regulations.

“During a recent visit to a mountainous province, we saw people carving out hillsides to build homes. This is extremely dangerous,” he said.

Local authorities must prohibit construction in landslide-prone areas as part of their development plans.

Key lessons from typhoon Yagi

Reflecting on the lessons learned from the devastating typhoon Yagi in 2024, Hiep identified forecasting, leadership, and local preparedness as the most critical factors in disaster response.

Hiep credited accurate forecasts with helping to mitigate Yagi’s impact. However, he stressed the need for even faster and more precise forecasting in the future.

As for decisive leadership, he cited an example from Lao Cai Province, where a village head preemptively evacuated his community due to a high risk of landslides.

Besides, he urged communities in high-risk areas to prepare safe shelters and stockpile essential supplies to reduce damage from heavy rains and storms.

Typhoon Yagi, the third storm to hit Vietnam in 2024 and the most powerful storm to have struck the East Vietnam Sea over the past three decades, killed and injured hundreds of people. The typhoon ripped through the northern region in early September last year.

Tree management, future planning

Drawing on last year’s experience, Hiep also highlighted the issue of urban tree maintenance.

Some localities neglected to prune large trees, resulting in widespread uprooting when storms struck.

He called on cities to plan tree-planting more strategically, using species better suited to withstand strong winds such as the Madagascar almond and palm trees.