More than 586,000 people are being evacuated ahead of the arrival of Typhoon Kajiki. At the Vietnam coast, wind pace at 166 km/h or 103 mph is expected to strengthen even more before making its landfall on Monday, according to weather forecasts.
People from the central provinces of Thanh Hoa, Quang Tri, Hue and Da Nang have been ordered to leave their homes. Boats are being told to stay ashore while flights are being cancelled. Vietnam Airlines cancelled at least 22 flights to and from central cities on Sunday and Monday. The storm winds past Hainan in China are expected to cause rainfall of up to 320 mm.
Typhoon Kajiki is expected to intensify as it moves towards the islands of Vietnam. Despite that, the country will experience wind speeds of 200 km/h and rainfall of more than 300 to 400 mm. Storm surge of 2 to 4 m (6.6 to 13 feet) is also expected. Authorities also informed that the projected path of the typhoon is towards the coastline, and people living there are expected not to go outside after 14:00 GMT on Sunday. To help people evacuate, soldiers have been deployed by the authorities.
“The situation is extremely dangerous and not safe for any vehicle or structure such as tourism or fishing vessels and aquaculture raising facilities,” said a concerned official from the Ministry of Agricultural Environment to the international media.
Agencies also warn that this storm could be as devastating as Typhoon Yagi, which occurred last year in September and killed hundreds of people across the region, including 300 in Vietnam alone.
How is Typhoon Created
A typhoon or a tropical cyclone or a hurricane is an extreme circular storm that originates in the warm tropical seas. It is characterised by low pressure, strong winds, and heavy rain. The low-pressure centre, or the eye of the typhoon, forms according to the rotation of the Earth and the movement of water vapour and heat from the warm ocean to the atmosphere. Air provides the power to the tropical cyclone: as the humid air rises, it spreads and cools, but if the humidity is high, winds might create water columns where the temperature of the rising air and the surface winds can differ, causing the typhoon.