Multiple Measures to Minimize Damage and Losses Caused

Vol.3 No.3 Sep. 2013
APEC Research Center for Typhoon and Society
10F, No.97, Sec.1, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei, 10093, Taiwan
Tel: 886-2-3366-8975 Email: [email protected]
ACTS Website: http://www.apectyphoon.org
Multiple Measures to Minimize Damage and Losses
Caused by Typhoons in Viet Nam
Nguyen Thi Hien Thuan, Hoang Duc Cuong, Nguyen Dang Mau
Viet Nam Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Environment
Introduction
Viet Nam is one of the most disaster - prone countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Its geography and
topography combined make the country highly susceptible to a range of natural disasters, including mostly
storms, floods, droughts, and landslides. The most damaging and frequent disasters affecting Viet Nam are
tropical storms - typhoons and floods (Gov., 2007).
On average 5-6 typhoons hit the Vietnamese coastline each year. They can cause great destruction and
death as they move in over land. When a typhoon passes it brings strong winds, heavy rain, high water
levels, and large waves. Some analysis shows that there is an increasing trend in disasters recorded over the
twenty-year period of the study (1989-2010) with varied impact on human loss and damage to housing.
Extreme events have occurred also in this time period (Oanh, 2011).
Table 1. Top 10 Natural Disasters in Viet Nam for the period 1900 to 2013, ranked by economic damage (a)
and number killed (b).
(Source: "EM-DAT: The OFDA/CRED International Disaster Database, www.em-dat.net - Université
Catholique de Louvain - Brussels - Belgium")
From the top 10 natural disasters in Viet Nam for the period 1900 to 2013, in terms of economic damage
costs, 6 events are storms, and in terms of number of casualties, even more are storms, 7 events.
In recent years, typhoon seasons have ended later and the country has been affected by an increased
number of higher intensity typhoons. Typhoon tracks have gradually moved southwards with some
exhibiting increasingly abnormal movements (MONRE, 2003).
While preventive measures are being taken, losses and damages from disasters are substantial for Viet
Nam. In the past ten years, natural disasters have cost around 8,000 lives and 1.5% GDP per year. Viet Nam
could experience even higher losses in the future due to an increase in concentration of assets at risk and
possibly an increase in frequency and intensity of major events linked to climate change (CDRH, 2012).
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Vol.3 No.3 Sep. 2013
APEC Research Center for Typhoon and Society
10F, No.97, Sec.1, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei, 10093, Taiwan
Tel: 886-2-3366-8975 Email: [email protected]
ACTS Website: http://www.apectyphoon.org
Mean annual temperature in Viet Nam has increased by 0.5oC over the past 50 years, with a sea level rise of
about 20 cm. The influence of El-Niño and La-Niña phenomena has increasingly expanded throughout the
country. Climate change has intensified natural disasters, particularly storms, floods and droughts. The
average temperature in Viet Nam is estimated to increase by 2 - 3oC and sea level rise by 60 – 75cm by the
year 2100 (MONRE, 2012).
Population growth, combined with rapid socio-economic development, urbanization, pressures on natural
resources and climate change, have increased the exposure and vulnerability of the population to these
hazards and consequent disaster risk (Oanh, 2011).
Case Studies on recent destructive tropical cyclones in Viet Nam
• Typhoon Xangsane (No 6, Oct 2006, landing in Central Viet Nam)
Formed on September 25, 2006, in the
Western Pacific near the coast of the
Philippine Islands, the typhoon crossed the
Philippines and the East Sea and came
ashore in central Viet Nam on October 1,
2006. This category 12 - 13 typhoon is the
biggest storm to hit the country in several
decades with more than 70 people dead
and an estimation of over 10 billion VND ~
650 mil USD in costs. More than 10
provinces were heavily damaged in which
Da Nang City was the worst affected (12,000
homes were destroyed and 113,000 were
damaged).
(Left) Fig. 1. Satellite image of Typhoon
Xangsane hitting Central Viet Nam
(Below) Fig. 2. 2009 flood in Quang Nam
Province following typhoon Ketsana
(Photo by Tra Bang)
• Typhoon Ketsana (No 9, Sep 2009, landing in Quang Ngai, South Central Viet Nam)
Typhoon Ketsana struck the central coast of
Viet Nam on Sep 29, 2009 and killed 163
persons in 14 provinces. More than 258,000
houses were destroyed or damaged; flooding
affected nearly 295,000 others (CCFSC). Other
infrastructure damage include roads, schools,
health clinics, agricultural land, irrigation
systems and dykes. Nonharvested crops and
livestock were lost, and fruit trees and
commercial forests were damaged.
The typhoon was accompanied by heavy rainfall
over a vast area. 3-day rainfall extremes were
observed (Quang Ngai: 914 mm, Thua Thien
Hue: 884 mm and in the range of 200-400mm in
surrounding areas even further in land [Central
Highland of Vietnam]). As a consequence, water
level increased very fast and passed historical
peak (by 0.7m in Tra Bong).
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Vol.3 No.3 Sep. 2013
APEC Research Center for Typhoon and Society
10F, No.97, Sec.1, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei, 10093, Taiwan
Tel: 886-2-3366-8975 Email: [email protected]
ACTS Website: http://www.apectyphoon.org
The number of deaths due to Ketsana, a level 13 typhoon, is also higher than during Xangsane, a level 12-13
storm. In Xangsane, people mainly died because of houses collapsing or boats sinking, while most of the
victims of Ketsana were killed by floods. Damages caused by Typhoon Ketsana are estimated at nearly 12
trillion dong, nearly 800 thousand USD.
• Tropical storms in 2013
In July and early August 2013, Viet Nam experienced two strong tropical storms (No. 5 - Jebi and No. 6 Mangkhut). Although prolonged and intensive rain was observed, damage, especially loss of life was much
smaller compared to those in previous events. Early warning and active preparation together with
preventive measures with the participation of all government levels have shown to be effective and
contribute to this achievement.
Interventions
Viet Nam has an extensive long-standing institutional response system for natural disasters. The key
coordinating body is the Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC); other members of CCFSC
include relevant line ministries, the Department of Floods and Storm Control and Dyke Management, the
Disaster Management Centre, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE), and the Viet
Nam Red Cross (VNRC). The Natural Disaster Mitigation Partnership (NDM-P) is composed of Government,
NGOs and donors to promote dialogue and common ways of working, and support coordination for
implementation of the National Strategy for Disaster Mitigation and Prevention.
This Strategy prioritises an increase in raising awareness and participation, minimizing loss of life and
assets, and stresses the importance of co-existence with floods (Gov., 2007). Other key initiatives of the
National Strategy include: establishment of disaster forecast centres; construction of flood corridors and
flood retention areas in southern Viet Nam; the use of advanced information and communication
technology; strengthening the role of schools and the media in raising awareness.
In the context of climate change, the government has adopted National Target Program to Respond to
Climate Change (2008), and approved National Strategy on Climate Change (2011) and National Action Plan
for Climate Change (2012). These important programs thus set goals that involve a range of inter-sectoral
institutional measures and reflect the cross-cutting nature of the impacts of climate change. These include
vulnerability assessments across sectoral, regional, and community levels; enhancing the role of science and
technology for adaptation solutions; increasing public awareness and participation; and integrating climate
change into development strategies, plans, and programs in all sectors.
Despite a remarkable progress in economic and social development in recent years, additional capacity in
climate risk assessment and disaster management is needed in order to address the range of data, research,
and institutional gaps that still exist.
Reference
Central Committee for Flood and Storm Control (CCFSC) Viet Nam – Disaster Database:
http://www.ccfsc.gov.vn/KW6F2B34/Disaster-Database.aspx
Government of Viet Nam, 2007: National Strategy for Disaster Mitigation and Prevention toward 2020
(Gov., 2007)
Center for Excellence in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance, 2012: Country Disaster
Response Handbook – Việt Nam (CDRH, 2012)
http://www.coe-dmha.org/Publications/cdr_handbooks/Vietnam_DisasterResponse_Handbook2012.pdf
Hoang D. Cuong, Nguyen T. Xuan: Overview of tropical cyclones activities in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012.
MONRE, 2003: Vietnam Initial National Communication to the UNFCCC.
MONRE, 2012: Climate Change, Sea Level Rise Scenarios for Viet Nam
Oanh Luong Nhu, Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, Ian Wilderspin and Miguel Coulierd, 2011: A preliminary analysis of
flood and storm disaster data in Viet Nam (Oanh, 2011)
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