Floodwaters on Ba River in central Vietnam rise over 1m above 1993 historic peak

The National Center for Hydrometeorological Forecasting said heavy rainfall persisted across the central Vietnamese provinces and cities from Da Nang to Khanh Hoa on Wednesday, including 206mm at the Buon Tang station in Gia Lai Province, 452mm at the Dap Tran station in Dak Lak, and 260mm at the Khanh Nam station in Khanh Hoa.

Exceptionally high inflows of more than 16,000m³/s were recorded at the Song Ba Ha hydropower plant, which was releasing about 15,100 m³/s downstream as of 9:00 pm.

Flood levels continued rising on Wednesday night on the Kon River in Gia Lai, the Ba and Krong Ana Rivers in Dak Lak, and the Dinh and Cai Rivers in Khanh Hoa.

At 10:00 pm, the water level on the Ba River reached 40.97m at the Cung Son station, exceeding danger level 3 by 6.47m and rising 1.07m higher than the 1993 historic peak. The Phu Lam station also exceeded danger level 3 by 1.58m, surpassing the 1993 record by 7cm.

On the Dinh River in Khanh Hoa’s Ninh Hoa, floodwaters reached 6.57m, just 1cm below the 1986 historic level.

On the Cai River in Khanh Hoa’s Nha Trang, water rose to 12.6m, about 1.6m above danger level 3.

Forecasters warned that floodwaters on the Ba River at the Cung Son and Phu Lam stations would continue rising over the next 12 hours, staying far above danger level 3 under reservoir release scenarios of 16,000-18,000 m³/s from Ba Ha and Song Hinh reservoirs.

Over the next 24 hours, the Ba and Kon Rivers are expected to remain at extremely high levels.

Due to the severe flooding, the national forecasting center issued a level-4 disaster risk warning (very high risk) for eastern Dak Lak, and level 3 (high risk) for river basins from Gia Lai to Khanh Hoa.

Officials said the situation combines major flooding, flash-flood threats, and landslide risks capable of causing widespread loss of life and severe infrastructure damage.

Heavy rainfall of 150-250mm, with isolated totals above 450mm, is forecast to continue across eastern Dak Lak and northern Khanh Hoa through Friday.

Da Nang, eastern Quang Ngai, Gia Lai, western Dak Lak, southern Khanh Hoa, and Lam Dong will possibly see rainfall of 70-150mm, with local areas exceeding 200mm.

The center added that further precipitation of 40-70mm is expected in Da Nang and the eastern parts of Quang Ngai to Dak Lak and northern Khanh Hoa.

According to a rapid report from the Vietnam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority, heavy downpours and floods had claimed the lives of 14 residents, left five other missing, and flooded more than 28,000 homes across the central region as of 5:00 pm on Wednesday.

More than 5,700 households with over 18,000 residents were evacuated in Gia Lai, Dak Lak, and Khanh Hoa.