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abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1162584
HANOI (Reuters) - Typhoon Damrey smashed into Vietnam on Tuesday after killing 16 people in China, tearing into vital networks of sea dykes on a long stretch of coastline after more than 330,000 people had been evacuated. The 16 died on the Chinese island of Hainan as the typhoon plowed across early on Monday, most of them when buildings collapsed or trees were felled by powerful winds which left economic damage estimated at 10 billion yuan
Vietnam had worked frantically as the typhoon approached to evacuate as many people as possible and deployed small armies to shore up the sea dykes. Prime Minister Phan Van Khai had ordered that only young people, police and soldiers stay behind to watch over dykes built to keep the sea out of rice fields. But the barriers were soon breached in some areas.
The dykes were built to withstand strong gales, but Damrey — Khmer for elephant — was blowing at 133 kph (83 mph) as it came ashore, cutting electricity supplies and ripping up trees. Lieutenant-General Hoang Ky told state television that sea surges of up to 5 metres (16 feet), made worse by high tides, slammed into the coastline. Nguyen Van Hop, head of the Nghia Phuc commune People’s Committee in the northern province of Nam Dinh, told Reuters by telephone that 2 km (1.2 miles) of dykes had been seriously damaged in his area alone. “We are not able to save the dyke but people are safe,” he said.
HANOI (Reuters) - Typhoon Damrey smashed into Vietnam on Tuesday after killing 16 people in China, tearing into vital networks of sea dykes on a long stretch of coastline after more than 330,000 people had been evacuated. The 16 died on the Chinese island of Hainan as the typhoon plowed across early on Monday, most of them when buildings collapsed or trees were felled by powerful winds which left economic damage estimated at 10 billion yuan
Vietnam had worked frantically as the typhoon approached to evacuate as many people as possible and deployed small armies to shore up the sea dykes. Prime Minister Phan Van Khai had ordered that only young people, police and soldiers stay behind to watch over dykes built to keep the sea out of rice fields. But the barriers were soon breached in some areas.
The dykes were built to withstand strong gales, but Damrey — Khmer for elephant — was blowing at 133 kph (83 mph) as it came ashore, cutting electricity supplies and ripping up trees. Lieutenant-General Hoang Ky told state television that sea surges of up to 5 metres (16 feet), made worse by high tides, slammed into the coastline. Nguyen Van Hop, head of the Nghia Phuc commune People’s Committee in the northern province of Nam Dinh, told Reuters by telephone that 2 km (1.2 miles) of dykes had been seriously damaged in his area alone. “We are not able to save the dyke but people are safe,” he said.