pagetop
Asian Disaster Reduction Center(ADRC)
Disaster Information
TOP PAGEDisaster Information > Details of Disaster Information

Viet Nam: Flood: 1999/11 Country Information on DRR

Period 1999/11
Country or District Viet Nam
Event Type Flood
Outline On 01 - 03 November 1999, due to the effect of strong cold air front in combination with the activities of a tropical conversion, there were heavy-to-very heavy rains in the Central Provinces from Quang Binh to Binh Dinh. Heavy rain, concentrating in a short period of time, caused flash flood in some places in mountainous areas of Quang Nam Province and Thua Thien-Hue Province, and caused large flooding on river banks from Quang Nam to Binh Dinh Provinces. The floods killed nearly 600 people and caused damage of around $250 million.
Summary
Human Impact Physical Impact Others
OCHA Situation Report No.2 1999/11/09
535 people have died as a result of the fortnight's flooding, 324 of whom lived in the province of Thua Thien Hue.
15,000 people have been evacuated.
At least 63,726 ha of paddy fields have been damaged by the deluge, and 11,813 ha definitively lost, while 30,985 ha of other crops have been damaged. Parts of National Highway One, which links Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city, and long tracks of the north-south railway are still impassable.
OCHA Situation Report No. 3 1999/11/12
At least 63,726 ha of paddy fields have been damaged by the deluge, and 11,813 ha definitively lost, while 30,985 ha of other crops have been damaged. Figures for livestock losses occasioned by the floods reach as high as 693,154.
32,830 tons of food have gone to waste and 130,000 tons, including rice and corn, lie rotting in warehouses.
267 km of road and 5,416 m of dykes used for conducting water resources and for transportation suffered heavy damages.
AFP 1999/11/10
At least 550 people died and 63 have been reported missing since last week's disaster. The floods are estimated to have caused 200 million dollars in damages in the region, one of the poorest in the country.
Reuters 1999/11/16
It said 9,862 people had eye infections, 9,347 had diarrhea, 1,096 people suffered from dysentery. The floods killed nearly 600 people and caused damage of around $250 million.
OCHA Situation Report No.1 1999/11/05
On 5 November the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC) reported at least 233 deaths resulting from more than a fortnight of flooding in central Vietnam. Accurate figures are impossible owing to interrupted communication lines, but it is known that more than 255,299 houses have collapsed and 15,000 households have been evacuated. At least 6,477 ha of paddy fields have been damaged by the deluge, and 5,588 ha definitively lost. According to the CCFSC, 32,830 tons of food have gone to waste. 38.3 km of road and 8,140 m of dykes used for conducting water resources and for transportation have suffered heavy damages. Telecommunications have been reestablished in the former imperial capital, Hue city, which is home to 1 million people.

Related Links

Report/Articles

Accident and Disaster Information Center Report

Latest updates on the floods in Viet Nam (ReliefWeb)
A list of the latest major documents added to ReliefWeb pertaining to the flood in Viet Nam.

AFP 1999/12/06
At least 105 people were reported dead Monday and 22 missing in floods affecting more than a million people in central Vietnam.

AFP 1999/12/05
At least 70 people died and another 10 were reported missing in fast rising flood waters in central Vietnam, which has been plagued by flooding for the second time in a month.

ABC 1999/11/25
The torrential rains that triggered the worst flooding in Vietnam in a century caused over 235 million US dollars in damage and killed almost 600 people. About 650,000 homes were damaged or destroyed, while 570 schools and 75 hospitals and clinics were swept away.

AFP 1999/11/23
The Vatican on Tuesday handed over 100,000 dollars (97,000 euros) for flood relief in Vietnam, where hundreds of people died this month.

ABC 1999/11/17
The Vietnamese government will reportedly distribute 33-thousand tonnes of food from national stockpiles to help 1.8 million flood victims facing starvation.

Reuters 1999/11/16
Disease has struck thousands of Vietnamese in the aftermath of central Vietnam's worst floods in a century, official media reported Tuesday.

ABC 1999/11/12
Aust Gov't promises aid to disaster victims in India and Vietnam

OCHA Situation Report No. 3 1999/11/12
On 9 November the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued an official appeal for international assistance to overcome drastic food shortages and repair and replace housing and infrastructure in the devastated central provinces.

AFP 1999/11/10
The risk of food shortages and epidemics in flood-devastated central Vietnam appeared to be fading as food and medicine reached the estimated seven million victims.

OCHA Situation Report No.2 1999/11/09
Vestiges of thick mud make burials difficult and hamper relief workers' attempts to dispose of rubbish and animal carcasses.

OCHA Situation Report No.1 1999/11/05
By 1 November rivers in the provinces stretching from Nghe An to Binh Dinh exceeded alarm level III. Uncontrollable flooding combined with landslides inflicted severe damage on roads, dykes and infrastructure. The streets of Hue ran with water up to 3 metres high.

CNN News 1999/11/08 03:56GMT
Clearer skies on Monday would allow helicopters to deliver more emergency supplies of food, fresh water and medicine, relief officials said.

BBC News 1999/11/07 21:58GMT
The authorities in Vietnam say they are taking urgent measures to prevent any outbreak of cholera and other diseases. The authorities say that more than five hundred people were killed in the floods and more than one million homes destroyed.

Reuters 1999/11/05
Raging floods have killed 357 people in central coastal Vietnam

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) 1999/11/04
The official death toll from flooding caused by three days of heavy rain, now stands at 127, but there are reports many more have died. A state of emergency has been issued in seven provinces.

Urgent Report from Supporting Members of the Asian Disaster Reduction Center

Report from the Government of Viet Nam 1999/11/09

Report from the Government of Viet Nam 1999/11/04