A typhoon and flash flooding across northern Vietnam over the weekend has led to at least 59 people dead and the collapse of a bridge on Monday in the Southeast Asian country, according to local reports.
Typhoon Yagi originally made landfall with winds reaching up to 92 mph (149 kph). The storm has since weakened to a tropical depression, but the country's meteorological agency warned the continuing downpours could cause floods and landslides.
According to state media VN Express, nine people died when Typhoon Yagi made landfall on Saturday, making it the strongest typhoon to hit Vietnam in decades. At least 50 others have died in the consequent floods and landslides.
Early Monday morning in Phu Tho province, a steel bridge over the Red River gave way under the strain of surging floodwaters. According to reports, ten vehicles, including trucks, cars, and motorbikes, plunged into the river when Phong Chau bridge collapsed. While three individuals were rescued and hospitalized, authorities continue to search for 13 others who remain missing.
One survivor, Pham Truong Son, shared his experience of driving on the bridge on his motorcycle when he heard a loud noise and it collapsed. He told VN Express how he fell into the river and narrowly survived by clinging to a banana tree.
"I felt like I was drowned to the bottom of the river," Son told the newspaper.
In addition, in Cao Bang province on Monday a passenger bus carrying 20 people was washed into a flooded stream by a sudden landslide. Rescue efforts have been hindered by treacherous conditions, as landslides have blocked key access routes.
This comes after a landslide killed six people including an infant and injured nine others on Sunday in Sa Pa town, a popular trekking base. Overall, state media reported 21 deaths and at least 299 people injured from the weekend.
Newsweek has reached out to the Vietnam government via email for comment.
Local businesses are also reeling from the recent deadly weather. According to state media Lao Dong newspaper, in Haiphong province, a key industrial hub, many factories are still struggling to recover from the storm's destructive force. The roofs of several factories were torn apart, and flooding damaged expensive equipment and goods.
In addition, some businesses have been without power since the weekend and estimate it could take weeks to restore operations.
Meanwhile, in response to the typhoon, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh approved a $4.62 million aid package on Sunday to assist with recovery efforts in Haiphong. However, damage assessments suggest that nearly 100 enterprises have suffered substantial losses, totaling millions of dollars.
Typhoon Yagi's path of destruction also extends beyond Vietnam's borders. Before hitting Vietnam, the storm claimed at least 20 lives in the Philippines and four more in southern China, where it caused $102 million in damages, collapsing homes and knocking out power lines across Hainan province.
Experts warn that storms like Yagi could become more frequent and severe due to climate change.
"Warmer ocean waters provide more energy to fuel the storms, leading to increased wind speeds and heavier rainfall," Benjamin Horton, director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore told The Associated Press.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press
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