Typhoon Bualoi ravages Vietnam with unusual fury

Typhoon Bualoi has struck central and northern Vietnam with unusual strength and persistence, unleashing violent winds, tornadoes, and floods.

Its remnants continued to bring heavy rain and widespread flooding across northern and north-central provinces, leaving behind serious human and material losses, according to a report by VietNamNet.

On Friday night, Bualoi entered the eastern part of the central East Sea as the 10th named storm of this year, packing sustained winds of level 12 and gusts up to level 15, moving northwest at a rapid 35 kilometres per hour.

After entering the East Sea, it held its power and track, later slowing to 30-35kph on Saturday, and to around 25kph by the next morning.

On Sunday, the storm came ashore between Ha Tinh and northern Quang Tri with winds at level 11 and gusts up to 14.

It then pushed northwest, weakening as it crossed into Nghe An and central Laos on Monday, before downgrading to a depression and then a low-pressure system over upper Laos.

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One of the most powerful storms in decades

Mai Van Khiem, director of Vietnam’s National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, called Bualoi one of the most powerful storms in decades, citing its rare characteristics: exceptional speed, averaging 30-35kph, nearly double that of normal storms, and its prolonged presence on land, maintaining storm strength for over 12 hours.

Its circulation drenched areas from the northern region down to Hue, with rainfall exceeding 500 millimetres in some places.

Winds above level 6 struck 11 of 21 coastal provinces, with the worst-hit areas from southern Ha Tinh to northern Quang Tri enduring winds of level 10-11 and gusts up to 14.

Khiem said that this was among the most devastating disasters in recent history, pointing to the simultaneous occurrence of violent winds, mass inundation, flash floods, and landslides.

Bualoi breaks records

Climate expert Dr Nguyen Ngoc Huy added that Bualoi broke three records.

These included: the fastest storm ever observed in the East Sea, peaking at 40kph; the longest time lashing a single province – 11 hours in Ha Tinh; and the highest number of tornadoes in one day, with eight occurring across eight provinces on Monday.

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