Vietnam may seek retirement of storm name Bualoi following widespread destruction

Mai Van Khiem, director of the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, under the Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration, said on Friday that the administration will coordinate with relevant agencies to recommend to the World Meteorological Organization’s Typhoon Committee that the name 'Bualoi' be retired.

“Bualoi, the 10th storm to hit the East Vietnam Sea in 2025, caused devastating damage to both people and property.

“We will work with related bodies to propose the removal of the name ‘Bualoi’ from the list,” Khiem stated.

Under the naming system approved by the Typhoon Committee in 1998, each member country contributes 10 storm names to a rotating list. Any member can request that a name be retired if the storm it represents causes serious consequences.

The name Bualoi was contributed by Thailand and refers to a traditional Thai dessert.

The storm formed off the Philippines and entered the East Vietnam Sea on September 26 with maximum sustained winds of level 12 (118-133 kph) and gusts up to level 15 (167-183 kph).

By the night of September 28, it made landfall between Ha Tinh and northern Quang Tri Provinces with winds of level 11 (103-117 kph), gusting to level 14 (150-166 kph).

It brought heavy rain, flooding, landslides, and tornadoes to northern and north-central Vietnam.

As of Friday morning, the storm and subsequent floods left 53 people dead, 14 missing, and 164 injured, according to a report from the Department of Dyke Management and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment.

About 349 houses collapsed, more than 174,000 were damaged or unroofed, and nearly 64,000 were flooded. Over 1,480 schools were affected.

The agricultural sector was also hit hard, with 89,000 hectares of crops and over 50,000 hectares of forests damaged, 83,000 trees uprooted.

Over 2,260 livestock and nearly 566,000 poultry died or were swept away, while 17,000 hectares of aquaculture were ruined.

Infrastructure damage included 9,558 power poles toppled, more than 33 kilometers of river and coastal embankments eroded, and widespread road blockages at over 7,570 points across northern and north-central provinces.

Authorities have restored power for 2.4 million households, though about 300,000 remain without electricity.

Telecommunications were also disrupted, with over 1,100 base stations offline.

Preliminary economic losses across several provinces are estimated at VND16.510 trillion (US$626 million), with Ha Tinh suffering the most at VND6 trillion ($228 million), followed by Tuyen Quang at VND3 trillion ($114 million), Lao Cai at VND2.750 trillion ($104 million), Nghe An at VND2.136 trillion ($81 million), and Cao Bang at VND750 billion ($28 million).